Security assessments indicate that CVE-2024-44976 presents a notable risk, potentially requiring prompt mitigation.
Status: Analyzed
Last updated: 🕠 10 Oct 2024, 17:50 UTC
Originally published on: 🕗 04 Sep 2024, 20:15 UTC
Time between publication and last update: 35 days
CVSS Release: version 3
nvd@nist.gov
Primary
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
CVE-2024-44976: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ata: pata_macio: Fix DMA table overflow Kolbjørn and Jonáš reported that their 32-bit PowerMacs were crashing in pata-macio since commit 09fe2bfa6b83 ("ata: pata_macio: Fix max_segment_size with PAGE_SIZE == 64K"). For example: kernel BUG at drivers/ata/pata_macio.c:544! Oops: Exception in kernel mode, sig: 5 [#1] BE PAGE_SIZE=4K MMU=Hash SMP NR_CPUS=2 DEBUG_PAGEALLOC PowerMac ... NIP pata_macio_qc_prep+0xf4/0x190 LR pata_macio_qc_prep+0xfc/0x190 Call Trace: 0xc1421660 (unreliable) ata_qc_issue+0x14c/0x2d4 __ata_scsi_queuecmd+0x200/0x53c ata_scsi_queuecmd+0x50/0xe0 scsi_queue_rq+0x788/0xb1c __blk_mq_issue_directly+0x58/0xf4 blk_mq_plug_issue_direct+0x8c/0x1b4 blk_mq_flush_plug_list.part.0+0x584/0x5e0 __blk_flush_plug+0xf8/0x194 __submit_bio+0x1b8/0x2e0 submit_bio_noacct_nocheck+0x230/0x304 btrfs_work_helper+0x200/0x338 process_one_work+0x1a8/0x338 worker_thread+0x364/0x4c0 kthread+0x100/0x104 start_kernel_thread+0x10/0x14 That commit increased max_segment_size to 64KB, with the justification that the SCSI core was already using that size when PAGE_SIZE == 64KB, and that there was existing logic to split over-sized requests. However with a sufficiently large request, the splitting logic causes each sg to be split into two commands in the DMA table, leading to overflow of the DMA table, triggering the BUG_ON(). With default settings the bug doesn't trigger, because the request size is limited by max_sectors_kb == 1280, however max_sectors_kb can be increased, and apparently some distros do that by default using udev rules. Fix the bug for 4KB kernels by reverting to the old max_segment_size. For 64KB kernels the sg_tablesize needs to be halved, to allow for the possibility that each sg will be split into two.
The exploitability of CVE-2024-44976 depends on two key factors: attack complexity (the level of effort required to execute an exploit) and privileges required (the access level an attacker needs).
CVE-2024-44976 presents an accessible attack vector with minimal effort required. Restricting access controls and implementing security updates are critical to reducing exploitation risks.
A lower complexity and fewer privilege requirements make exploitation easier. Security teams should evaluate these aspects to determine the urgency of mitigation strategies, such as patch management and access control policies.
Attack Complexity (AC) measures the difficulty in executing an exploit. A high AC means that specific conditions must be met, making an attack more challenging, while a low AC means the vulnerability can be exploited with minimal effort.
Privileges Required (PR) determine the level of system access necessary for an attack. Vulnerabilities requiring no privileges are more accessible to attackers, whereas high privilege requirements limit exploitation to authorized users with elevated access.
Above is the CVSS Sub-score Breakdown for CVE-2024-44976, illustrating how Base, Impact, and Exploitability factors combine to form the overall severity rating. A higher sub-score typically indicates a more severe or easier-to-exploit vulnerability.
Below is the Impact Analysis for CVE-2024-44976, showing how Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability might be affected if the vulnerability is exploited. Higher values usually signal greater potential damage.
The EPSS score estimates the probability that this vulnerability will be exploited in the near future.
EPSS Score: 0.043% (probability of exploit)
EPSS Percentile: 11.87%
(lower percentile = lower relative risk)
This vulnerability is less risky than approximately 88.13% of others.
NVD-CWE-noinfo
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