wifi: ath9k: avoid uninit memory read in ath9k_htc_rx_msg()
Key facts
- Attack vector
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- Privileges required
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- User interaction
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- Attack complexity
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- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
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- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 4 without a fix
No CVSS vector from any source. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: ath9k: avoid uninit memory read in ath9k_htc_rx_msg() syzbot is reporting uninit value at ath9k_htc_rx_msg() [1], for ioctl(USB_RAW_IOCTL_EP_WRITE) can call ath9k_hif_usb_rx_stream() with pkt_len = 0 but ath9k_hif_usb_rx_stream() uses __dev_alloc_skb(pkt_len + 32, GFP_ATOMIC) based on an assumption that pkt_len is valid. As a result, ath9k_hif_usb_rx_stream() allocates skb with uninitialized memory and ath9k_htc_rx_msg() is reading from uninitialized memory. Since bytes accessed by ath9k_htc_rx_msg() is not known until ath9k_htc_rx_msg() is called, it would be difficult to check minimal valid pkt_len at "if (pkt_len > 2 * MAX_RX_BUF_SIZE) {" line in ath9k_hif_usb_rx_stream(). We have two choices. One is to workaround by adding __GFP_ZERO so that ath9k_htc_rx_msg() sees 0 if pkt_len is invalid. The other is to let ath9k_htc_rx_msg() validate pkt_len before accessing. This patch chose the latter. Note that I'm not sure threshold condition is correct, for I can't find details on possible packet length used by this protocol.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | 2.6.35 and later | 4.14.296, 4.19.262, 5.4.220, 5.10.150, 5.15.75, 5.19.17, 6.0.3, 6.1 | Patch available | CNA |
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 2.6.35 and later Fixed in 4.14.296, 4.19.262, 5.4.220, 5.10.150, 5.15.75, 5.19.17, 6.0.3, 6.1 Patch available CNA
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 4.14.296, 4.19.262, 5.4.220, 5.10.150, 5.15.75, 5.19.17, 6.0.3, 6.1
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
Not affected: 1 product
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2022-50709
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-cpm8-mrmc-3w57
References
Other 8
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f3d2a3b7e290d0bdbddfcee5a6c3d922e2b7e02a
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/84242f15f911f34aec9b22f99d1e9bff19723dbe
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2c485f4f2a64258acc5228e78ffb828c68d9e770
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9661724f6206bd606ecf13acada676a9975d230b
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b1b4144508adfc585e43856b31baaf9008a3beb4
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0d2649b288b7b9484e3d4380c0d6c4720a17e473
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4891a50f5ed8bfcb8f2a4b816b0676f398687783
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b383e8abed41cc6ff1a3b34de75df9397fa4878c
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Sources
- CVE-2022-50709 · CVE Program
- CVE-2022-50709 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-cpm8-mrmc-3w57 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2022-50709 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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