Description
Use-after-free vulnerability in the Linux kernel before 3.3.6, when huge pages are enabled, allows local users to cause a denial of service (system crash) or possibly gain privileges by interacting with a hugetlbfs filesystem, as demonstrated by a umount operation that triggers improper handling of quota data.
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 6.0 | linux-2.6 | 2.6.32-44 | DSA-2469-1 |
Red Hat
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 6 | perf +15 | 2.6.32-279.14.1.el6 | RHSA-2012:1426 |
Show 2 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 6.2 EUS | perf +15 | 2.6.32-220.34.1.el6 | RHSA-2013:0741 |
| Red Hat MRG 2 | kernel-rt +11 | 3.2.33-rt50.66.el6rt | RHSA-2012:1491 |
Advisories 4
- RHSA-2012:1491 Red Hat Security Advisory: kernel-rt security and bug fix update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jul 20, 2026
- RHSA-2012:1426 Red Hat Security Advisory: kernel security and bug fix update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 28, 2026
- RHSA-2013:0741 Red Hat Security Advisory: kernel security and bug fix update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 26, 2026
- DSA-2469-1 linux-2.6 - several Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
References
- http://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux-2.6.git%3Ba=commit%3Bh=90481622d75715bfcb68501280a917dbfe516029
- DSA-2469 vendor-advisory
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=817430
- SUSE-SU-2012:0616 vendor-advisory
- [oss-security] 20120424 Re: CVE Request: use after free bug in "quota" handling in hugetlb code mailing-list
- http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v3.x/ChangeLog-3.3.6
- 53233 vdb-entry
- linux-kernel-hugepages-dos(75168) vdb-entry
- https://github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/90481622d75715bfcb68501280a917dbfe516029