Buffer Overflow Risk in Linux Kernel USB Audio Driver
CVE-2024-53150

7.1HIGH

Key Information:

Vendor: Linux
Status: Linux
Vendor: CVE Published:; 24 December 2024

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📈 Score: 1,080💰 Ransomware👾 Exploit Exists🦅 CISA Reported📰 News Worthy

What is CVE-2024-53150?

CVE-2024-53150 is a vulnerability associated with the USB audio driver in the Linux kernel. This driver is responsible for handling audio devices connected via USB, which are prevalent in various computing environments. The identified vulnerability entails a buffer overflow risk linked to inadequate checks on the lengths of descriptors provided by USB devices. The exploitation of this vulnerability could allow an attacker to cause out-of-bounds reads, potentially leading to system instability or unauthorized access, thereby impacting organizations that rely on Linux-based systems for their audio needs.

Technical Details

The vulnerability arises from the Linux kernel's USB audio driver failing to validate the length of each clock descriptor during traversal. When a USB audio device provides an incorrectly specified descriptor with a shorter length, the driver can attempt to read beyond the allocated memory boundaries. This situation leads to out-of-bounds reads, which can cause erratic behavior or crashes in the system. The patch for this vulnerability introduces additional sanity checks for these descriptors, ensuring that those with incorrect lengths are effectively bypassed during processing, thus enhancing the driver’s stability and security.

Potential impact of CVE-2024-53150

System Instability: The buffer overflow can cause the audio driver to behave unpredictably, potentially leading to system crashes or freezing, which disrupts business operations that rely on audio functionalities.
Unauthorized Access: If exploited, the vulnerability may allow attackers to read memory areas that are not intended to be accessible, which could lead to the exposure of sensitive information or system credentials.
Compromise of Audio Devices: With a successful exploit, attackers may gain control over the USB audio devices connected to the system, leading to further vulnerabilities and exploitation avenues within the infrastructure of an organization.

CISA Reported

CISA provides regional cyber and physical services to support security and resilience across the United States. CISA monitor the most dangerious vulnerabilities and have identifed as being exploited but is not known by the CISA to be used in ransomware campaigns. This is subject to change at pace as recent news articles suggest the vulnerability is being used by ransomware groups.

The CISA's recommendation is: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.