The BPF subsystem in the Linux kernel before 4.5.5 mishandles reference counts, which…
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- High
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- No fix listed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · NVD. Fix status from CNA.
Summary
The BPF subsystem in the Linux kernel before 4.5.5 mishandles reference counts, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (use-after-free) or possibly have unspecified other impact via a crafted application on (1) a system with more than 32 Gb of memory, related to the program reference count or (2) a 1 Tb system, related to the map reference count.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | all versions | — | No fix listed | CNA |
- — Vendor— Affected all versions Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 3
Remediation
No fixed version listed by the sources yet.
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Important. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
Not affected: 4 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- Red Hat Enterprise MRG 2
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2016-4558
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-283c-4h8h-4xmp
References
Advisory 8
- USN-3006-1
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1334303
- USN-3005-1
- https://github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/92117d8443bc5afacc8d5ba82e541946310f106e
- USN-3007-1
- http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v4.x/ChangeLog-4.5.5
- [oss-security] 20160506 CVE Requests: Linux: BPF flaws (one use-after-free / local root privilege escalation)
- http://git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=92117d8443bc5afacc8d5ba82e541946310f106e
Sources
- CVE-2016-4558 · CVE Program
- CVE-2016-4558 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-283c-4h8h-4xmp · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2016-4558 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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