CVE-2022-50462

Local memory exhaustion via unreleased device reference

Published Oct 1, 2025 · Updated Oct 1, 2025

Memory leak in the Linux kernel's MIPS VPE loader module allows local users to exhaust memory by repeatedly unloading the module. Module exit drops neither the vpe_device reference nor its dynamically allocated name, preventing kobject_cleanup from freeing that memory. Local access with permission to unload the module is required; repeated triggering can deplete kernel memory and interrupt service.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.16%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Memory leak in the Linux kernel's MIPS VPE loader module allows local users to exhaust memory by repeatedly unloading the module. Module exit drops neither the vpe_device reference nor its dynamically allocated name, preventing kobject_cleanup from freeing that memory. Local access with permission to unload the module is required; repeated triggering can deplete kernel memory and interrupt service.

The record

CVE
CVE-2022-50462
Published
Oct 1, 2025
Updated
Oct 1, 2025
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
CWE-401, T1499.004
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Oct 1, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Oct 1, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <170e9913c2ed5cfc37c0adf0fdbd368d2d8d8168
  2. Affected versionversion=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <48d42f4464d713fbdd79f334fdcd6e5be534cc67
  3. Affected versionversion=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <5822e8cc84ee37338ab0bdc3124f6eec04dc232d
  4. Affected versionversion=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <851ae5640875f06494e40002cd503b11a634c6fb
  5. Affected versionversion=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <9d180e0bb21c57bd6cca2adeb672d3b522e910b5
  6. Affected versionversion=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <ab3d47c1fd0202821abd473ca87580faafd47847
  7. Affected versionversion=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <b191dde84e40624d5577f64db0ec922c5c0ec57c
  8. Affected versionversion=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <b3325a443525e3b89151879b834519b21c5e3011
  9. Affected versionversion=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <e820a8192ff68570100347855b567512aec43819
  10. Affected versionversion=2.6.30

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <170e9913c2ed5cfc37c0adf0fdbd368d2d8d8168; version=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <48d42f4464d713fbdd79f334fdcd6e5be534cc67; version=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <5822e8cc84ee37338ab0bdc3124f6eec04dc232d; version=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <851ae5640875f06494e40002cd503b11a634c6fb; version=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <9d180e0bb21c57bd6cca2adeb672d3b522e910b5; version=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <ab3d47c1fd0202821abd473ca87580faafd47847; version=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <b191dde84e40624d5577f64db0ec922c5c0ec57c; version=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <b3325a443525e3b89151879b834519b21c5e3011; version=1fa5ae857bb14f6046205171d98506d8112dd74e <e820a8192ff68570100347855b567512aec43819; version=2.6.30

Published CVSS scores

5.5NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

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No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-401Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime
T1499.004Application or System Exploitation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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