In net/socket.c in the Linux kernel through 4.17.1, there is a race condition between…
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- High
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · High
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.0 · NVD. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
In net/socket.c in the Linux kernel through 4.17.1, there is a race condition between fchownat and close in cases where they target the same socket file descriptor, related to the sock_close and sockfs_setattr functions. fchownat does not increment the file descriptor reference count, which allows close to set the socket to NULL during fchownat's execution, leading to a NULL pointer dereference and system crash.
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
Remediation
Red Hat 1 advisory
- RHSA-2018:2948 Released 2018-10-30 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel-alt security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux for ARM and IBM Power LE (POWER9) Server (v. 7) kernel-4.14.0-115.el7a, kernel-abi-whitelists-4.14.0-115.el7a, kernel-alt-4.14.0-115.el7a +9
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux for ARM and IBM Power LE (POWER9) Server Optional (v. 7) kernel-debug-devel-4.14.0-115.el7a, kernel-tools-libs-devel-4.14.0-115.el7a
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux for ARM and IBM Power LE (POWER9) Server (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2018:2948 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux for ARM and IBM Power LE (POWER9) Server Optional (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2018:2948 |
Not affected: 5 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat Enterprise MRG 2
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2018-12232
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-wg55-v4qx-w8g3
References
Patch 3
More Linux Kernel vulnerabilities
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- TI-2013-05264 The (1) get_user and (2) put_user API functions in the Linux kernel before 3.5.5 on the… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2022-00125 Integer overflow in kernel KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
- TI-2013-01864 The perf_swevent_init function in kernel/events/core.c in the Linux kernel before 3.8.9… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
- TI-2021-05514 Heap Out-Of-Bounds Write in Netfilter IP6T_SO_SET_REPLACE KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.3
Sources
- CVE-2018-12232 · CVE Program
- CVE-2018-12232 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-wg55-v4qx-w8g3 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2018-12232 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences