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Security Digest · Vulnerability record · Known exploited

CVE-2017-1000253: Linux Kernel PIE Stack Buffer Corruption Vulnerability

Exploited in the wild (CISA KEV). Linux distributions that have not patched their long-term kernels with https://git.kernel.org/linus/a87938b2e246b81b4fb713edb371a9fa3c5c3c86 (committed on April 14, 2015).

CISA KEV · added 2024-09-09 CVSS 7.8 High EPSS 10.7% · p96

Updated By erroneo.us Security Desk17 references Seen in the digest for Sep 9, 2024

Should you act?

Exploited: patch now if you run it

CISA has confirmed exploitation in the wild. This signal is computed from CISA KEV, EPSS and CVSS data; it is not an editorial verdict.

  • Yes, if you run Linux Kernel. CISA added this CVE to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2024-09-09, which means there is reliable evidence of exploitation in the wild. US federal agencies must remediate by 2024-09-30; treat that as the outer limit, not the target. CISA also lists it as known to be used in ransomware campaigns.
  • EPSS 10.7%, percentile 96: FIRST’s model estimates a 10.7% chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 96% of all scored CVEs (very high). EPSS is a probability, not a verdict.
  • Needs local access needed. Lower urgency for most teams unless an attacker could already run code on the machine.

What it is

Linux distributions that have not patched their long-term kernels with https://git.kernel.org/linus/a87938b2e246b81b4fb713edb371a9fa3c5c3c86 (committed on April 14, 2015). This kernel vulnerability was fixed in April 2015 by commit a87938b2e246b81b4fb713edb371a9fa3c5c3c86 (backported to Linux 3.10.77 in May 2015), but it was not recognized as a security threat. With CONFIGARCHBINFMTELFRANDOMIZEPIE enabled, and a normal top-down address allocation strategy, loadelfbinary() will attempt to map a PIE binary into an address range immediately below mm->mmapbase. Unfortunately, loadelf binary() does not take account of the need to allocate sufficient space for the entire binary which means that, while the first PTLOAD segment is mapped below mm->mmapbase, the subsequent PTLOAD segment(s) end up being mapped above mm->mmapbase into the are that is supposed to be the "gap" between the stack and the binary.

CISA’s summary

Linux kernel contains a position-independent executable (PIE) stack buffer corruption vulnerability in load_elf_ binary() that allows a local attacker to escalate privileges.

Weakness type: CWE-119.

Product: Linux Kernel · Assigned by: mitre · Published: 2017-10-04

Affected and fixed versions

VendorProductAffected versions (per CVE record)
n/an/asee vendor advisory

Severity scores

Scored byCVSSScoreVector
CISA-ADP3.17.8 HighCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
  • Attack vector: local access needed
  • Attack complexity: low
  • Privileges required: low (any account)
  • User interaction: none
  • Scope: unchanged

CVSS measures how bad a flaw is if exploited, not how likely exploitation is. Read it next to the exploitation data below.

Exploitation and urgency

  • CISA KEV: added 2024-09-09; federal due date 2024-09-30. Known ransomware use: Known.
  • CISA required action: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.
  • CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation active, automatable no, technical impact total.
  • FIRST EPSS (model of 2026-10-21): 10.70% probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 96.

Timeline

  • — CVE record published by mitre
  • — Added to CISA’s Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog
  • — CISA remediation deadline for US federal agencies
  • — CVE record last updated

Sources and references

Original sources first. Version and fix details should always be confirmed against the vendor or project advisory.

Vendor and project advisories, patches

  1. RHSA-2017:2798 access.redhat.com
  2. RHSA-2017:2795 access.redhat.com
  3. RHSA-2017:2801 access.redhat.com
  4. RHSA-2017:2796 access.redhat.com
  5. RHSA-2017:2799 access.redhat.com
  6. RHSA-2017:2794 access.redhat.com
  7. RHSA-2017:2793 access.redhat.com
  8. RHSA-2017:2797 access.redhat.com
  9. RHSA-2017:2802 access.redhat.com
  10. RHSA-2017:2800 access.redhat.com
  11. Listed in CISA KEV notes (git.kernel.org) git.kernel.org

Vulnerability records

  1. CVE.org record CVE-2017-1000253 cve.org
  2. NVD entry CVE-2017-1000253 nvd.nist.gov

Government

  1. CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog entry cisa.gov

Other references from the CVE record and advisory

  1. 1039434 securitytracker.com
  2. 101010 securityfocus.com
  3. qualys.com qualys.com

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