Zack's Kernel News
Kernel News
Zack covers: When a Security Hole Is OK; Kernel Documentation Updates; and Security Through Obscurity
When a Security Hole Is OK
Eric W. Biederman recently posted a patch to replace a 32-bit counter with a 64-bit counter. This would fix the problem that, as he put it, "With care an attacker can cause exec_id wrap and send arbitrary signals to a newly exec'd parent."
He added that he had tested this hole and found that he could wrap the 32-bit exec_id and exploit the problem in two weeks. Faster systems, of course, could do it more quickly.
However, Eric did acknowledge that on 32-bit CPUs, "reading self_exec_id is no longer atomic and can take two read instructions." This meant that on 32-bit systems there would be a microscopic window of time when the actual self_exec_id value would not match the value being read by the code. During that time, he said, this security hole remained exploitable.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
US / Canada
UK / Australia
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Red Hat Releases RHEL 10 Early
Red Hat quietly rolled out the official release of RHEL 10.0 a bit early.
-
openSUSE Joins End of 10
openSUSE has decided to not only join the End of 10 movement but it also will no longer support the Deepin Desktop Environment.
-
New Version of Flatpak Released
Flatpak 1.16.1 is now available as the latest, stable version with various improvements.
-
IBM Announces Powerhouse Linux Server
IBM has unleashed a seriously powerful Linux server with the LinuxONE Emperor 5.
-
Plasma Ends LTS Releases
The KDE Plasma development team is doing away with the LTS releases for a good reason.
-
Arch Linux Available for Windows Subsystem for Linux
If you've ever wanted to use a rolling release distribution with WSL, now's your chance.
-
System76 Releases COSMIC Alpha 7
With scores of bug fixes and a really cool workspaces feature, COSMIC is looking to soon migrate from alpha to beta.
-
OpenMandriva Lx 6.0 Available for Installation
The latest release of OpenMandriva has arrived with a new kernel, an updated Plasma desktop, and a server edition.
-
TrueNAS 25.04 Arrives with Thousands of Changes
One of the most popular Linux-based NAS solutions has rolled out the latest edition, based on Ubuntu 25.04.
-
Fedora 42 Available with Two New Spins
The latest release from the Fedora Project includes the usual updates, a new kernel, an official KDE Plasma spin, and a new System76 spin.