Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime
CVE-2024-39490
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ipv6: sr: fix missing sk_buff release in seg6_input_core The seg6_input() function is responsible for adding the SRH into a packet, delegating the operation to the seg6_input_core(). This function uses the skb_cow_head() to ensure that there is sufficient headroom in the sk_buff for accommodating the link-layer header. In the event that the skb_cow_header() function fails, the seg6_input_core() catches the error but it does not release the sk_buff, which will result in a memory leak. This issue was introduced in commit af3b5158b89d ("ipv6: sr: fix BUG due to headroom too small after SRH push") and persists even after commit 7a3f5b0de364 ("netfilter: add netfilter hooks to SRv6 data plane"), where the entire seg6_input() code was refactored to deal with netfilter hooks. The proposed patch addresses the identified memory leak by requiring the seg6_input_core() function to release the sk_buff in the event that skb_cow_head() fails.
- LOW
- LOCAL
- NONE
- UNCHANGED
- NONE
- NONE
- HIGH
- NONE
CWE-401 - Missing release of memory after effective lifetime (memory leak)
'Missing release of memory after effective lifetime (memory leak)' is a weakness that occurs when software doesn't effectively release allocated memory after it is used. If not addressed, this enables attackers to launch denial of service attacks (by crashing or hanging the program) or take advantage of other unexpected behavior resulting from low memory conditions.
References
Advisory Timeline
- Published