In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
ARM: integrator: Fix early initialization
Starting with commit bdb249fce9ad4 ("ARM: integrator: read counter using
syscon/regmap"), intcp_init_early calls syscon_regmap_lookup_by_compatible
which in turn calls of_syscon_register. This function allocates memory.
Since the memory management code has not been initialized at that time,
the call always fails. It either returns -ENOMEM or crashes as follows.
Unable to handle kernel NULL pointer dereference at virtual address 0000000c when read
[0000000c] *pgd=00000000
Internal error: Oops: 5 [#1] ARM
Modules linked in:
CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 0 Comm: swapper Not tainted 6.15.0-rc5-00026-g5fcc9bf84ee5 #1 PREEMPT
Hardware name: ARM Integrator/CP (Device Tree)
PC is at __kmalloc_cache_noprof+0xec/0x39c
LR is at __kmalloc_cache_noprof+0x34/0x39c
...
Call trace:
__kmalloc_cache_noprof from of_syscon_register+0x7c/0x310
of_syscon_register from device_node_get_regmap+0xa4/0xb0
device_node_get_regmap from intcp_init_early+0xc/0x40
intcp_init_early from start_kernel+0x60/0x688
start_kernel from 0x0
The crash is seen due to a dereferenced pointer which is not supposed to be
NULL but is NULL if the memory management subsystem has not been
initialized. The crash is not seen with all versions of gcc. Some versions
such as gcc 9.x apparently do not dereference the pointer, presumably if
tracing is disabled. The problem has been reproduced with gcc 10.x, 11.x,
and 13.x. Either case, if the crash is not seen, the call to
syscon_regmap_lookup_by_compatible returns -ENOMEM, and
sched_clock_register is never called.
Fix the problem by moving the early initialization code into the standard
machine initialization code.
SSVC (CISA's decision table, applied by EchelonGraph)Track at low or medium mission impact; Track* at high (mission-essential systems).
A fix is available. Apply it within your standard update timelines.
Exploitation none (no CISA value, KEV listing or exploit code on record) · Automatable no (CISA's BOD 26-04 default) · Technical impact total (CISA's BOD 26-04 default). EchelonGraph holds no SSVC assessment of this CVE from CISA: none of these inputs is from Vulnrichment. EchelonGraph applied CISA's decision table to them; CISA publishes SSVC inputs and the table, not a decision for each CVE. Mission impact is CISA's Mission & Well-being decision point, and only you can judge it. CISA's table makes it high when Mission Prevalence is Essential — the vulnerable component "directly provides capabilities that constitute at least one MEF for at least one entity" (MEF: mission essential function) — or when Public Well-Being Impact is Irreversible: "multiple fatalities are likely", the cyber-physical system "is likely lost or destroyed", "extreme or serious externalities" are imposed on other parties, or social systems such as elections or the financial grid "are destabilized and potentially collapse". CISA's decision table
BOD 26-04 (CISA's remediation timeline, Table 1)14 days if the affected system is publicly exposed; Fix on system upgrade if it is not.
In CISA KEV no (CISA's KEV catalog) · Automatable no (CISA's BOD 26-04 default) · Technical impact total (CISA's BOD 26-04 default). Where an input reads “CISA's BOD 26-04 default”, no one has published it for this CVE, and CISA's implementation guidance says: “If “Automatable” and “Technical Impact” information items about a CVE ID are not available and the CVE ID is not in the KEV Catalog, CISA will treat its values as “no” and “total,” respectively, until CISA or a third party provides metadata about the CVE ID. CISA will always provide the Vulnrichment data for a CVE ID listed in the KEV Catalog.” Whether your system is publicly exposed is yours to answer. BOD 26-04 binds US Federal Civilian Executive Branch agencies; for anyone else it is CISA's published timeline, a reference rather than an obligation. The directive · how EchelonGraph applies it