REDHAT-BUG-652529: Medium severity red hat linux vulnerability

Published Nov 12, 2010

Updated

Due to integer underflow and overflow issues when determining the number of pages required for maliciously crafted I/O requests, a local user could send a device ioctl that results in the sequential allocation of a very large number of pages, causing the OOM killer to be invoked and crashing the system:

Proposed patch: http://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/axboe/linux-2.6-block.git;a=commit;h=cb4644cac4a2797afc847e6c92736664d4b0ea34

Acknowledgements:

Red Hat would like to thank Dan Rosenberg for reporting this issue.

Affected Software

1 affected component

Red Hat Linux Kernel

Event History

Nov 12, 2010

Data Sourced

via Red Hat·06:27 AM

DescriptionSeverityAffected Software

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the severity of REDHAT-BUG-652529?

The severity of REDHAT-BUG-652529 is considered high due to the potential for crashing the system via excessive page allocation.

How do I fix REDHAT-BUG-652529?

To fix REDHAT-BUG-652529, ensure your Red Hat Linux Kernel is updated to the latest version that addresses this integer underflow and overflow issue.

Who is affected by REDHAT-BUG-652529?

Local users of the Red Hat Linux Kernel versions vulnerable to this issue are primarily affected by REDHAT-BUG-652529.

What triggers REDHAT-BUG-652529?

REDHAT-BUG-652529 is triggered by a maliciously crafted device ioctl that manipulates I/O requests leading to excessive page allocation.

What impact does REDHAT-BUG-652529 have on system stability?

The impact of REDHAT-BUG-652529 on system stability includes system crashes due to the invocation of the OOM killer from excessive memory allocation.