CVE-2020-8835
Publication date 30 March 2020
Last updated 24 July 2024
Ubuntu priority
Cvss 3 Severity Score
In the Linux kernel 5.5.0 and newer, the bpf verifier (kernel/bpf/verifier.c) did not properly restrict the register bounds for 32-bit operations, leading to out-of-bounds reads and writes in kernel memory. The vulnerability also affects the Linux 5.4 stable series, starting with v5.4.7, as the introducing commit was backported to that branch. This vulnerability was fixed in 5.6.1, 5.5.14, and 5.4.29. (issue is aka ZDI-CAN-10780)
From the Ubuntu Security Team
Manfred Paul discovered that the bpf verifier in the Linux kernel did not properly calculate register bounds for certain operations. A local attacker could use this to expose sensitive information (kernel memory) or gain administrative privileges.
Mitigation
Mitigation for this vulnerability is available by setting the kernel.unprivileged_bpf_disabled sysctl to 1: $ sudo sysctl kernel.unprivileged_bpf_disabled=1 $ echo kernel.unprivileged_bpf_disabled=1 | \ sudo tee /etc/sysctl.d/90-CVE-2020-8835.conf This issue is also mitigated on systems that use secure boot, thanks to the kernel lockdown feature which blocks BPF program loading.
Status
Package | Ubuntu Release | Status |
---|---|---|
linux | 20.04 LTS focal |
Not affected
|
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial |
Not affected
|
|
14.04 LTS trusty |
Not affected
|
|
linux-aws | 20.04 LTS focal |
Not affected
|
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial |
Not affected
|
|
14.04 LTS trusty |
Not affected
|
|
linux-aws-5.0 | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-aws-hwe | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic | Not in release | |
16.04 LTS xenial |
Not affected
|
|
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-azure | 20.04 LTS focal |
Not affected
|
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial |
Not affected
|
|
14.04 LTS trusty |
Not affected
|
|
linux-azure-5.3 | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Fixed 5.3.0-1018.19~18.04.1
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-azure-edge | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic | Ignored end of life, was needs-triage | |
16.04 LTS xenial | Ignored end of standard support, was needs-triage | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-gcp | 20.04 LTS focal |
Not affected
|
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial |
Not affected
|
|
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-gcp-5.3 | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Fixed 5.3.0-1016.17~18.04.1
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-gcp-edge | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic | Ignored end of life, was needs-triage | |
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-gke-4.15 | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-gke-5.0 | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-gke-5.3 | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Fixed 5.3.0-1016.17~18.04.1
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-hwe | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Fixed 5.3.0-45.37~18.04.1
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial |
Not affected
|
|
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-hwe-edge | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic | Ignored end of life, was needs-triage | |
16.04 LTS xenial |
Not affected
|
|
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-kvm | 20.04 LTS focal |
Not affected
|
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial |
Not affected
|
|
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-lts-trusty | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic | Not in release | |
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-lts-xenial | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic | Not in release | |
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty |
Not affected
|
|
linux-oem | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial |
Not affected
|
|
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-oem-5.6 | 20.04 LTS focal |
Not affected
|
18.04 LTS bionic | Not in release | |
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-oem-osp1 | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-oracle | 20.04 LTS focal |
Not affected
|
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial |
Not affected
|
|
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-oracle-5.0 | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-oracle-5.3 | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Fixed 5.3.0-1013.14~18.04.1
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-raspi2 | 20.04 LTS focal | Ignored end of life, was needs-triage |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial |
Not affected
|
|
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-raspi2-5.3 | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Fixed 5.3.0-1021.23~18.04.1
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial | Not in release | |
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release | |
linux-snapdragon | 20.04 LTS focal | Not in release |
18.04 LTS bionic |
Not affected
|
|
16.04 LTS xenial |
Not affected
|
|
14.04 LTS trusty | Not in release |
Notes
sbeattie
introduced by upstream commit 581738a681b6, which was mistakenly backported to upstream stable 5.4 kernel (b4de258dede528f88f401259aab3147fb6da1ddf). Ubuntu's 5.3 kernels are affected because 5.4 stable backport commits were pulled into Ubuntu's 5.3 kernels.
Severity score breakdown
Parameter | Value |
---|---|
Base score | 7.8 · High |
Attack vector | Local |
Attack complexity | High |
Privileges required | Low |
User interaction | None |
Scope | Changed |
Confidentiality | High |
Integrity impact | High |
Availability impact | High |
Vector | CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H |
References
Related Ubuntu Security Notices (USN)
- USN-4313-1
- Linux kernel vulnerability
- 30 March 2020
Other references
- https://www.thezdi.com/blog/2020/3/19/pwn2own-2020-day-one-results
- https://lore.kernel.org/bpf/20200330160324.15259-1-daniel@iogearbox.net/T/
- https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2020/03/30/3
- https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=f2d67fec0b43edce8c416101cdc52e71145b5fef
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-20-350/
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-8835