Unvalidated pointer in Zephyr I2S configure syscall reaches kernel slabs
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- High
- Impact type
- Code execution
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA. Impact type from CWE-787 and the CVSS impact.
Summary
The Zephyr I2S configure syscall verifier passes an unvalidated, user-supplied kernel object pointer to drivers. When the frame clock frequency is 0 (the unconfigure request), the verifier skips the memory slab ownership and type check, so any thread running under CONFIG_USERSPACE that has access to an I2S device can reach driver code with a fake slab pointer. The i2s_litex driver stores the caller's configuration and later calls k_mem_slab_alloc() and k_mem_slab_free() on that pointer in supervisor context, giving an unprivileged thread an arbitrary-pointer read and write primitive in the kernel. Builds without CONFIG_USERSPACE are not affected.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-04
Description from the CNA
The user-mode syscall verifier z_vrfy_i2s_configure() in drivers/i2s/i2s_handlers.c copies the caller's struct i2s_config in from user memory and then, when cfg->frame_clk_freq is 0 (the API's "unconfigure the stream" request), jumps straight to z_impl_i2s_configure() without performing the K_SYSCALL_OBJ(config.mem_slab, K_OBJ_MEM_SLAB) ownership/type check or the block_size sanity check. The mem_slab field is a struct k_mem_slab *, so on that path a completely unvalidated, user-chosen pointer reaches driver code that is entitled to trust it as a real kernel object. Any thread running under CONFIG_USERSPACE that has access to an I2S device object can trigger this with a single i2s_configure() call. Most in-tree drivers special-case frame_clk_freq == 0 and never store the caller's structure, but drivers/i2s/i2s_litex.c does not: i2s_litex_configure() only logs a warning for a mismatched frame clock, then memcpy()s the caller's config into stream->cfg and marks the stream I2S_STATE_READY. A subsequent i2s_trigger() with I2S_TRIGGER_START enables the FIFO interrupt, and the interrupt handlers i2s_litex_isr_rx() / i2s_litex_isr_tx() then call k_mem_slab_alloc() and k_mem_slab_free() on the attacker-supplied pointer in supervisor context. The result is an arbitrary-pointer read/write primitive executed by the kernel on behalf of an unprivileged thread — k_mem_slab_alloc() takes a spinlock at slab->lock and reads and writes slab->free_list and the link word inside the returned "block" — which defeats the CONFIG_USERSPACE isolation boundary entirely. The same missing validation is a hazard for out-of-tree I2S drivers that retain the configuration on the unconfigure path. Builds without CONFIG_USERSPACE are unaffected, since the verifier is not used. The fix zeroes config.mem_slab and config.block_size on the unconfigure path so the driver can never receive an unvalidated pointer, while still allowing a stream to be unconfigured by a caller that does not own a memory slab, as the API documents.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| zephyrproject | zephyr | 4.4.0 to before 4.5.0 | 4.5.0 | Patch available | CNA |
- zephyr Vendorzephyrproject Affected 4.4.0 to before 4.5.0 Fixed in 4.5.0 Patch available CNA
CPE names Threatist (inferred) · 1
Inferred from how NVD named this product before; not given by a source.
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:o:zephyrproject:zephyr:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | — | — | zephyrproject |
- cpe:2.3:o:zephyrproject:zephyr:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions — — ·zephyrproject
Remediation
Update Zephyr from 4.4.0 before 4.5.0 to 4.5.0. CISA is not listed for this flaw in the sources.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-04
- Fix · CNA zephyr (zephyrproject) Fixed in 4.5.0
Fixed in the same release
Records fixed by the same vendor advisory or release, as the CNA lists them.
- Release ·
zephyrproject zephyr 4.5.0
3 records Highest priority Priority LOW 3 LOW
Other records, highest priority first
- TI-2026-84940 Memory leak in Mbed TLS crypto shim lets remote attackers exhaust heapPriority LOW 28
- TI-2026-84939 Zephyr sys_rand_get() returns stale data when entropy is not readyPriority LOW 21
Timeline
- 2026-11-04 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-87039
- 2026-11-05 Priority changed: MEDIUM → LOW
References
Patch 1
Other 1
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- TI-2021-02863 Usb bluetooth device ACL read cb buffer overflow CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.6
Sources
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences