CVE-2022-48832: audit: don't deref the syscall args when checking the openat2 open_how::flags

Severity: medium (CVSS 5.5 v3.1)
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 0.2% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: none known
Published: 2024-07-16 · updated 2026-06-17

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: audit: don't deref the syscall args when checking the openat2 open_how::flags As reported by Jeff, dereferencing the openat2 syscall argument in audit_match_perm() to obtain the open_how::flags can result in an oops/page-fault. This patch fixes this by using the open_how struct that we store in the audit_context with audit_openat2_how(). Independent of this patch, Richard Guy Briggs posted a similar patch to the audit mailing list roughly 40 minutes after this patch was posted.

Affected products

Linux kernel: from 5.16 before 5.16.10; 5.17-rc1, 5.17-rc2, 5.17-rc3 — fixed in 5.16.10

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: Linux kernel 5.16.10. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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