Description
Heap-based buffer overflow in the tg3_read_vpd function in drivers/net/ethernet/broadcom/tg3.c in the Linux kernel before 3.8.6 allows physically proximate attackers to cause a denial of service (system crash) or possibly execute arbitrary code via crafted firmware that specifies a long string in the Vital Product Data (VPD) data structure.
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 14 | linux | 3.8.11-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | linux | 3.8.11-1 | — |
| Debian 12 | linux | 3.8.11-1 | — |
| Debian 7 | linux | 3.2.41-2+deb7u2 | DSA-2669-1 |
| Debian 6.0 | linux-2.6 | 2.6.32-48squeeze3 | DSA-2668-1 |
Red Hat
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 6 | perf +16 | 2.6.32-431.el6 | RHSA-2013:1645 |
| RHEL 5 | kernel +12 | 2.6.18-348.12.1.el5 | RHSA-2013:1034 |
Show 1 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat MRG 2 | kernel-rt +11 | 3.6.11.2-rt33.39.el6rt | RHSA-2013:0829 |
Advisories 5
- RHSA-2013:1645 Red Hat Security Advisory: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 kernel update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 28, 2026
- RHSA-2013:0829 Red Hat Security Advisory: kernel-rt security and bug fix update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 28, 2026
- DSA-2669-1 linux - several Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
- DSA-2668-1 linux-2.6 - several Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
- RHSA-2013:1034 Red Hat Security Advisory: kernel security and bug fix update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Nov 22, 2025
References
- USN-1834-1 vendor-advisory
- MDVSA-2013:176 vendor-advisory
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=949932
- SUSE-SU-2013:1473 vendor-advisory
- RHSA-2013:1645 vendor-advisory
- USN-1835-1 vendor-advisory
- http://cansecwest.com/slides/2013/PrivateCore%20CSW%202013.pdf
- USN-1838-1 vendor-advisory
- http://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux-2.6.git%3Ba=commit%3Bh=715230a44310a8cf66fbfb5a46f9a62a9b2de424
- openSUSE-SU-2013:1971 vendor-advisory
- USN-1836-1 vendor-advisory
- https://github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/715230a44310a8cf66fbfb5a46f9a62a9b2de424
- SUSE-SU-2013:1474 vendor-advisory
- http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v3.x/ChangeLog-3.8.6
- FEDORA-2013-5368 vendor-advisory
- [oss-security] 20130405 Re: CVE Request: tg3 VPD firmware -> driver injection mailing-list