CVE-2016-4997

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Last Modified: UTC

Description

A flaw was discovered in processing setsockopt for 32 bit processes on 64 bit systems. This flaw will allow attackers to alter arbitrary kernel memory when unloading a kernel module. This action is usually restricted to root-privileged users but can also be leveraged if the kernel is compiled with CONFIG_USER_NS and CONFIG_NET_NS and the user is granted elevated privileges.

A flaw was discovered in processing setsockopt for 32 bit processes on 64 bit systems. This flaw will allow attackers to alter arbitrary kernel memory when unloading a kernel module. This action is usually restricted to root-privileged users but can also be leveraged if the kernel is compiled with CONFIG_USER_NS and CONFIG_NET_NS and the user is granted elevated privileges.

Statement

This issue affects the Linux kernels as shipped with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7, MRG-2 and realtime and will be addressed in a future update.

This issue affects the Linux kernels as shipped with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7, MRG-2 and realtime and will be addressed in a future update.

Additional information

  • Bugzilla 1349722: kernel: compat IPT_SO_SET_REPLACE setsockopt
  • CWE-20: Improper Input Validation
  • FAQ: Frequently asked questions about CVE-2016-4997

Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) Score Details

Important note

CVSS scores for open source components depend on vendor-specific factors (e.g. version or build chain). Therefore, Red Hat's score and impact rating can be different from NVD and other vendors. Red Hat remains the authoritative CVE Naming Authority (CNA) source for its products and services (see Red Hat classifications).

CVSS v3
CVSS v3 Score Breakdown
Red HatNVD

CVSS v3 Base Score

7.3

7.8

Attack Vector

Local

Local

Attack Complexity

Low

Low

Privileges Required

Low

Low

User Interaction

Required

None

Scope

Unchanged

Unchanged

Confidentiality Impact

High

High

Integrity Impact

High

High

Availability Impact

High

High

CVSS v3 Vector

Red Hat: CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

NVD: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS v2

Understanding the Weakness (CWE)

CWE-20

Availability

Technical Impact: DoS: Crash, Exit, or Restart; DoS: Resource Consumption (CPU); DoS: Resource Consumption (Memory)

An attacker could provide unexpected values and cause a program crash or excessive consumption of resources, such as memory and CPU.

Confidentiality

Technical Impact: Read Memory; Read Files or Directories

An attacker could read confidential data if they are able to control resource references.

Integrity,Confidentiality,Availability

Technical Impact: Modify Memory; Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands

An attacker could use malicious input to modify data or possibly alter control flow in unexpected ways, including arbitrary command execution.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is Red Hat's CVSS v3 score or Impact different from other vendors?

My product is listed as "Under investigation" or "Affected", when will Red Hat release a fix for this vulnerability?

What can I do if my product is listed as "Will not fix"?

What can I do if my product is listed as "Fix deferred"?

What is a mitigation?

I have a Red Hat product but it is not in the above list, is it affected?

Why is my security scanner reporting my product as vulnerable to this vulnerability even though my product version is fixed or not affected?

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