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GHSA-XWMH-P524-56RV

Vulnerability from github – Published: 2026-09-24 18:31 – Updated: 2026-09-24 18:31

Details

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

bpf: NUL-terminate replaced sysctl value

When writing to sysctls, proc_sys_call_handler() guarantees that the buffer passed to proc handlers is NUL-terminated. If bpf_sysctl_set_new_value() replaces the pending sysctl value, it can hand a replacement buffer directly to proc handlers. However, the helper currently copies only buf_len bytes into that buffer without appending a NUL terminator, leaving downstream parsers vulnerable to out-of-bounds access.

Fix this by appending a '\0' after the replaced value to restore the expected sysctl semantics. Since the helper already rejects buf_len greater than PAGE_SIZE - 1, there is always room for the extra byte.

Reproduced in a QEMU x86_64 guest booted with KASAN while exercising the sysctl replacement path with a cgroup/sysctl BPF program. The reproducer targets /proc/sys/net/core/flow_limit_cpu_bitmap, fills the original user write buffer with non-zero bytes, and overrides the sysctl value so the replacement buffer lacks a terminating NUL. Under that setup, the pre-fix kernel reported:

BUG: KASAN: slab-out-of-bounds in strnchrnul+0x72/0x90 Read of size 1 at addr ffff88800de57000 by task repro_patch3/66 CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 66 Comm: repro_patch3 Not tainted 7.1.0-rc3-00269-g8370ca1f87cc #6 PREEMPT(lazy) Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS 1.15.0-1 04/01/2014 Call Trace: dump_stack_lvl+0x68/0xa0 print_report+0xcb/0x5e0 ? __virt_addr_valid+0x21d/0x3f0 ? strnchrnul+0x72/0x90 ? strnchrnul+0x72/0x90 kasan_report+0xca/0x100 ? strnchrnul+0x72/0x90 strnchrnul+0x72/0x90 bitmap_parse+0x37/0x2e0 flow_limit_cpu_sysctl+0xc6/0x840 ? __pfx_flow_limit_cpu_sysctl+0x10/0x10 ? __kvmalloc_node_noprof+0x5ba/0x870 proc_sys_call_handler+0x31d/0x480 ? __pfx_proc_sys_call_handler+0x10/0x10 ? selinux_file_permission+0x39f/0x500 ? lock_is_held_type+0x9e/0x120 vfs_write+0x98e/0x1000 ... The buggy address is located 0 bytes to the right of allocated 4096-byte region [ffff88800de56000, ffff88800de57000) With this fix applied, rerunning the same sysctl-targeted path yields no corresponding KASAN reports.

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{
  "affected": [],
  "aliases": [
    "CVE-2026-97420"
  ],
  "database_specific": {
    "cwe_ids": [],
    "github_reviewed": false,
    "github_reviewed_at": null,
    "nvd_published_at": "2026-09-24T17:17:19Z",
    "severity": null
  },
  "details": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nbpf: NUL-terminate replaced sysctl value\n\nWhen writing to sysctls, proc_sys_call_handler() guarantees that the\nbuffer passed to proc handlers is NUL-terminated. If\nbpf_sysctl_set_new_value() replaces the pending sysctl value, it can\nhand a replacement buffer directly to proc handlers. However, the\nhelper currently copies only buf_len bytes into that buffer without\nappending a NUL terminator, leaving downstream parsers vulnerable to\nout-of-bounds access.\n\nFix this by appending a \u0027\\0\u0027 after the replaced value to restore the\nexpected sysctl semantics. Since the helper already rejects buf_len\ngreater than PAGE_SIZE - 1, there is always room for the extra byte.\n\nReproduced in a QEMU x86_64 guest booted with KASAN while exercising\nthe sysctl replacement path with a cgroup/sysctl BPF program. The\nreproducer targets `/proc/sys/net/core/flow_limit_cpu_bitmap`, fills\nthe original user write buffer with non-zero bytes, and overrides the\nsysctl value so the replacement buffer lacks a terminating NUL. Under\nthat setup, the pre-fix kernel reported:\n\n  BUG: KASAN: slab-out-of-bounds in strnchrnul+0x72/0x90\n  Read of size 1 at addr ffff88800de57000 by task repro_patch3/66\n  CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 66 Comm: repro_patch3 Not tainted 7.1.0-rc3-00269-g8370ca1f87cc #6 PREEMPT(lazy)\n  Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS 1.15.0-1 04/01/2014\n  Call Trace:\n   \u003cTASK\u003e\n   dump_stack_lvl+0x68/0xa0\n   print_report+0xcb/0x5e0\n   ? __virt_addr_valid+0x21d/0x3f0\n   ? strnchrnul+0x72/0x90\n   ? strnchrnul+0x72/0x90\n   kasan_report+0xca/0x100\n   ? strnchrnul+0x72/0x90\n   strnchrnul+0x72/0x90\n   bitmap_parse+0x37/0x2e0\n   flow_limit_cpu_sysctl+0xc6/0x840\n   ? __pfx_flow_limit_cpu_sysctl+0x10/0x10\n   ? __kvmalloc_node_noprof+0x5ba/0x870\n   proc_sys_call_handler+0x31d/0x480\n   ? __pfx_proc_sys_call_handler+0x10/0x10\n   ? selinux_file_permission+0x39f/0x500\n   ? lock_is_held_type+0x9e/0x120\n   vfs_write+0x98e/0x1000\n   ...\n   \u003c/TASK\u003e\n  The buggy address is located 0 bytes to the right of\n  allocated 4096-byte region [ffff88800de56000, ffff88800de57000)\nWith this fix applied, rerunning the same sysctl-targeted path yields\nno corresponding KASAN reports.",
  "id": "GHSA-xwmh-p524-56rv",
  "modified": "2026-09-24T18:31:32Z",
  "published": "2026-09-24T18:31:32Z",
  "references": [
    {
      "type": "ADVISORY",
      "url": "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-97420"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/3b2814dd842a565fcf9cc370156e1ba9eae16239"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/76c14b10f50eb0afcc76e244562fa2d8c661e224"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a66e3b5bacf38d6ab29fa05a9754f7a114485605"
    }
  ],
  "schema_version": "1.4.0",
  "severity": []
}

CVE-2026-97420 (GCVE-0-2026-97420)

Vulnerability from cvelistv5 – Published: 2026-09-24 16:03 – Updated: 2026-09-25 12:43

Title

bpf: NUL-terminate replaced sysctl value

Summary

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: bpf: NUL-terminate replaced sysctl value When writing to sysctls, proc_sys_call_handler() guarantees that the buffer passed to proc handlers is NUL-terminated. If bpf_sysctl_set_new_value() replaces the pending sysctl value, it can hand a replacement buffer directly to proc handlers. However, the helper currently copies only buf_len bytes into that buffer without appending a NUL terminator, leaving downstream parsers vulnerable to out-of-bounds access. Fix this by appending a '\0' after the replaced value to restore the expected sysctl semantics. Since the helper already rejects buf_len greater than PAGE_SIZE - 1, there is always room for the extra byte. Reproduced in a QEMU x86_64 guest booted with KASAN while exercising the sysctl replacement path with a cgroup/sysctl BPF program. The reproducer targets `/proc/sys/net/core/flow_limit_cpu_bitmap`, fills the original user write buffer with non-zero bytes, and overrides the sysctl value so the replacement buffer lacks a terminating NUL. Under that setup, the pre-fix kernel reported: BUG: KASAN: slab-out-of-bounds in strnchrnul+0x72/0x90 Read of size 1 at addr ffff88800de57000 by task repro_patch3/66 CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 66 Comm: repro_patch3 Not tainted 7.1.0-rc3-00269-g8370ca1f87cc #6 PREEMPT(lazy) Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS 1.15.0-1 04/01/2014 Call Trace: <TASK> dump_stack_lvl+0x68/0xa0 print_report+0xcb/0x5e0 ? __virt_addr_valid+0x21d/0x3f0 ? strnchrnul+0x72/0x90 ? strnchrnul+0x72/0x90 kasan_report+0xca/0x100 ? strnchrnul+0x72/0x90 strnchrnul+0x72/0x90 bitmap_parse+0x37/0x2e0 flow_limit_cpu_sysctl+0xc6/0x840 ? __pfx_flow_limit_cpu_sysctl+0x10/0x10 ? __kvmalloc_node_noprof+0x5ba/0x870 proc_sys_call_handler+0x31d/0x480 ? __pfx_proc_sys_call_handler+0x10/0x10 ? selinux_file_permission+0x39f/0x500 ? lock_is_held_type+0x9e/0x120 vfs_write+0x98e/0x1000 ... </TASK> The buggy address is located 0 bytes to the right of allocated 4096-byte region [ffff88800de56000, ffff88800de57000) With this fix applied, rerunning the same sysctl-targeted path yields no corresponding KASAN reports.

Severity

No CVSS data available.

Assigner

Linux mitre root Scorecard

References

3 references

URL	Tags
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/76c14b10f50eb0afc…
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/3b2814dd842a565fc…
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a66e3b5bacf38d6ab…

Impacted products

2 products

Vendor	Product	Version
Linux	Linux	Affected: 32927393dc1ccd60fb2bdc05b9e8e88753761469 , < 76c14b10f50eb0afcc76e244562fa2d8c661e224 (git) Affected: 32927393dc1ccd60fb2bdc05b9e8e88753761469 , < 3b2814dd842a565fcf9cc370156e1ba9eae16239 (git) Affected: 32927393dc1ccd60fb2bdc05b9e8e88753761469 , < a66e3b5bacf38d6ab29fa05a9754f7a114485605 (git)
Linux	Linux	Affected: 5.8 Unaffected: 0 , < 5.8 (semver) Unaffected: 6.12.111 , ≤ 6.12.* (semver) Unaffected: 6.18.53 , ≤ 6.18.* (semver) Unaffected: 7.2 , ≤ * (original_commit_for_fix)

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{
  "containers": {
    "cna": {
      "affected": [
        {
          "defaultStatus": "unaffected",
          "product": "Linux",
          "programFiles": [
            "kernel/bpf/cgroup.c"
          ],
          "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
          "vendor": "Linux",
          "versions": [
            {
              "lessThan": "76c14b10f50eb0afcc76e244562fa2d8c661e224",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "32927393dc1ccd60fb2bdc05b9e8e88753761469",
              "versionType": "git"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "3b2814dd842a565fcf9cc370156e1ba9eae16239",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "32927393dc1ccd60fb2bdc05b9e8e88753761469",
              "versionType": "git"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "a66e3b5bacf38d6ab29fa05a9754f7a114485605",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "32927393dc1ccd60fb2bdc05b9e8e88753761469",
              "versionType": "git"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "defaultStatus": "affected",
          "product": "Linux",
          "programFiles": [
            "kernel/bpf/cgroup.c"
          ],
          "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
          "vendor": "Linux",
          "versions": [
            {
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "5.8"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "5.8",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "0",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "6.12.*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "6.12.111",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "6.18.*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "6.18.53",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "7.2",
              "versionType": "original_commit_for_fix"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "cpeApplicability": [
        {
          "nodes": [
            {
              "cpeMatch": [
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "6.12.111",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.8",
                  "vulnerable": true
                },
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "6.18.53",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.8",
                  "vulnerable": true
                },
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "7.2",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.8",
                  "vulnerable": true
                }
              ],
              "negate": false,
              "operator": "OR"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "descriptions": [
        {
          "lang": "en",
          "value": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nbpf: NUL-terminate replaced sysctl value\n\nWhen writing to sysctls, proc_sys_call_handler() guarantees that the\nbuffer passed to proc handlers is NUL-terminated. If\nbpf_sysctl_set_new_value() replaces the pending sysctl value, it can\nhand a replacement buffer directly to proc handlers. However, the\nhelper currently copies only buf_len bytes into that buffer without\nappending a NUL terminator, leaving downstream parsers vulnerable to\nout-of-bounds access.\n\nFix this by appending a \u0027\\0\u0027 after the replaced value to restore the\nexpected sysctl semantics. Since the helper already rejects buf_len\ngreater than PAGE_SIZE - 1, there is always room for the extra byte.\n\nReproduced in a QEMU x86_64 guest booted with KASAN while exercising\nthe sysctl replacement path with a cgroup/sysctl BPF program. The\nreproducer targets `/proc/sys/net/core/flow_limit_cpu_bitmap`, fills\nthe original user write buffer with non-zero bytes, and overrides the\nsysctl value so the replacement buffer lacks a terminating NUL. Under\nthat setup, the pre-fix kernel reported:\n\n  BUG: KASAN: slab-out-of-bounds in strnchrnul+0x72/0x90\n  Read of size 1 at addr ffff88800de57000 by task repro_patch3/66\n  CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 66 Comm: repro_patch3 Not tainted 7.1.0-rc3-00269-g8370ca1f87cc #6 PREEMPT(lazy)\n  Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS 1.15.0-1 04/01/2014\n  Call Trace:\n   \u003cTASK\u003e\n   dump_stack_lvl+0x68/0xa0\n   print_report+0xcb/0x5e0\n   ? __virt_addr_valid+0x21d/0x3f0\n   ? strnchrnul+0x72/0x90\n   ? strnchrnul+0x72/0x90\n   kasan_report+0xca/0x100\n   ? strnchrnul+0x72/0x90\n   strnchrnul+0x72/0x90\n   bitmap_parse+0x37/0x2e0\n   flow_limit_cpu_sysctl+0xc6/0x840\n   ? __pfx_flow_limit_cpu_sysctl+0x10/0x10\n   ? __kvmalloc_node_noprof+0x5ba/0x870\n   proc_sys_call_handler+0x31d/0x480\n   ? __pfx_proc_sys_call_handler+0x10/0x10\n   ? selinux_file_permission+0x39f/0x500\n   ? lock_is_held_type+0x9e/0x120\n   vfs_write+0x98e/0x1000\n   ...\n   \u003c/TASK\u003e\n  The buggy address is located 0 bytes to the right of\n  allocated 4096-byte region [ffff88800de56000, ffff88800de57000)\nWith this fix applied, rerunning the same sysctl-targeted path yields\nno corresponding KASAN reports."
        }
      ],
      "providerMetadata": {
        "dateUpdated": "2026-09-25T12:43:55.707Z",
        "orgId": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
        "shortName": "Linux"
      },
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          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/76c14b10f50eb0afcc76e244562fa2d8c661e224"
        },
        {
          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/3b2814dd842a565fcf9cc370156e1ba9eae16239"
        },
        {
          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a66e3b5bacf38d6ab29fa05a9754f7a114485605"
        }
      ],
      "title": "bpf: NUL-terminate replaced sysctl value",
      "x_generator": {
        "engine": "bippy-1.2.0"
      }
    }
  },
  "cveMetadata": {
    "assignerOrgId": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
    "assignerShortName": "Linux",
    "cveId": "CVE-2026-97420",
    "datePublished": "2026-09-24T16:03:30.084Z",
    "dateReserved": "2026-09-24T14:53:16.868Z",
    "dateUpdated": "2026-09-25T12:43:55.707Z",
    "state": "PUBLISHED"
  },
  "dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
  "dataVersion": "5.2"
}

Sightings

Author	Source	Type	Date	Other

Nomenclature

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Confirmed: The vulnerability has been validated from an analyst's perspective.
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Patched: The vulnerability was observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
Not exploited: The vulnerability was not observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
Not confirmed: The user expressed doubt about the validity of the vulnerability.
Not patched: The vulnerability was not observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.

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The approach is described in our paper Mapping CVEs to MITRE ATT&CK Techniques: A Curated Gold-Set Classifier and the Limits of LLM-Assisted Label Expansion.
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GHSA-XWMH-P524-56RV

CVE-2026-97420 (GCVE-0-2026-97420)

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