Description
Memory leak in QEMU, when built with a VMWARE VMXNET3 paravirtual NIC emulator support, allows local guest users to cause a denial of service (host memory consumption) by trying to activate the vmxnet3 device repeatedly.
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 | qemu | 1:2.5+dfsg-3 | — |
| Debian 13 | qemu | 1:2.5+dfsg-3 | — |
| Debian 12 | qemu | 1:2.5+dfsg-3 | — |
| Debian 8 | qemu | 1:2.1+dfsg-12+deb8u5a | DSA-3471-1 |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 14.04 LTS | qemu | 2.0.0+dfsg-2ubuntu1.22 | USN-2891-1 |
SUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES 12 SP1 | qemu | 2.3.1-14.1 | SUSE-SU-2016:1703-1 |
| SLES 12 SP1 | xen | 4.5.2_06-7.1 | SUSE-SU-2016:0873-1 |
| SLES 12 | qemu | 2.0.2-48.19.1 | SUSE-SU-2016:1560-1 |
| SLES 12 | xen | 4.4.4_02-22.19.1 | SUSE-SU-2016:1318-1 |
| SLES 11 SP4 | xen | 4.4.4_02-32.1 | SUSE-SU-2016:0955-1 |
Show 3 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES for SAP 12 SP1 | qemu | 2.3.1-14.1 | SUSE-SU-2016:1703-1 |
| SLES for SAP 12 SP1 | xen | 4.5.2_06-7.1 | SUSE-SU-2016:0873-1 |
| SLES for SAP 12 | qemu | 2.0.2-48.19.1 | SUSE-SU-2016:1560-1 |
| SLES for SAP 12 | xen | 4.4.4_02-22.19.1 | SUSE-SU-2016:1318-1 |
| SLES for SAP 11 SP4 | xen | 4.4.4_02-32.1 | SUSE-SU-2016:0955-1 |
openSUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| openSUSE Tumbleweed | xen | 4.7.0_12-1.3 | openSUSE-SU-2024:10196-1 |
Advisories 8
- USN-2891-1 qemu, qemu-kvm vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Sep 7, 2026
- DSA-3471-1 qemu - security update Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2016:1703-1 Security update for qemu SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2016:1318-1 Security update for xen SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2016:1560-1 Security update for qemu SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2016:0955-1 Security update for xen SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- openSUSE-SU-2024:10196-1 xen-4.7.0_12-1.3 on GA media SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · May 7, 2025
- SUSE-SU-2016:0873-1 Security update for xen SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · May 2, 2025
References
- 79721 vdb-entry
- [oss-security] 20151215 Re: CVE request Qemu: net: vmxnet3: host memory leakage mailing-list
- [qemu-devel] 20151215 Re: [Qemu-devel] net: vmxnet3: memory leakage issue mailing-list
- DSA-3471 vendor-advisory
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1289816
- GLSA-201602-01 vendor-advisory