USN-6724-1: Linux kernel vulnerabilities

9 April 2024

Several security issues were fixed in the Linux kernel.

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Details

Pratyush Yadav discovered that the Xen network backend implementation in
the Linux kernel did not properly handle zero length data request, leading
to a null pointer dereference vulnerability. An attacker in a guest VM
could possibly use this to cause a denial of service (host domain crash).
(CVE-2023-46838)

It was discovered that the Habana's AI Processors driver in the Linux
kernel did not properly initialize certain data structures before passing
them to user space. A local attacker could use this to expose sensitive
information (kernel memory). (CVE-2023-50431)

It was discovered that the device mapper driver in the Linux kernel did not
properly validate target size during certain memory allocations. A local
attacker could use this to cause a denial of service (system crash).
(CVE-2023-52429, CVE-2024-23851)

It was discovered that the CIFS network file system implementation in the
Linux kernel did not properly validate certain SMB messages, leading to an
out-of-bounds read vulnerability. An attacker could use this to cause a
denial of service (system crash) or possibly expose sensitive information.
(CVE-2023-6610)

Yang Chaoming discovered that the KSMBD implementation in the Linux kernel
did not properly validate request buffer sizes, leading to an out-of-bounds
read vulnerability. An attacker could use this to cause a denial of service
(system crash) or possibly expose sensitive information. (CVE-2024-22705)

Chenyuan Yang discovered that the btrfs file system in the Linux kernel did
not properly handle read operations on newly created subvolumes in certain
conditions. A local attacker could use this to cause a denial of service
(system crash). (CVE-2024-23850)

Several security issues were discovered in the Linux kernel.
An attacker could possibly use these to compromise the system.
This update corrects flaws in the following subsystems:

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Ubuntu Pro provides ten-year security coverage to 25,000+ packages in Main and Universe repositories, and it is free for up to five machines.

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Update instructions

The problem can be corrected by updating your system to the following package versions:

Ubuntu 23.10
Ubuntu 22.04

After a standard system update you need to reboot your computer to make
all the necessary changes.

ATTENTION: Due to an unavoidable ABI change the kernel updates have
been given a new version number, which requires you to recompile and
reinstall all third party kernel modules you might have installed.
Unless you manually uninstalled the standard kernel metapackages
(e.g. linux-generic, linux-generic-lts-RELEASE, linux-virtual,
linux-powerpc), a standard system upgrade will automatically perform
this as well.

References

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