Kernel crash via unchecked normal_link dereference
Published May 17, 2024 · Updated May 11, 2026
NULL pointer dereference in affected Linux kernels allows local users to crash the kernel through the MediaTek ASoC SOF path. Link matching compares a connection entry's normal_link string without first confirming that the pointer is non-NULL. Reachability requires low-privileged local access and a MediaTek SoC configuration with a SOF-only entry lacking normal_link; successful triggering causes an availability-only kernel panic.
Summary
What happened
NULL pointer dereference in affected Linux kernels allows local users to crash the kernel through the MediaTek ASoC SOF path. Link matching compares a connection entry's normal_link string without first confirming that the pointer is non-NULL. Reachability requires low-privileged local access and a MediaTek SoC configuration with a SOF-only entry lacking normal_link; successful triggering causes an availability-only kernel panic.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2024-35842
- Published
- May 17, 2024
- Updated
- May 11, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- CWE-476, T1499.004
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- May 17, 2024CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- May 11, 2026Record 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.
- Affected versionversion=0caf1120c58395108344d5df4e09359b67e95094 <b1d3db6740d0997ffc6e5a0d96ef7cbd62b35fdd
- Affected versionversion=0caf1120c58395108344d5df4e09359b67e95094 <cad471227a37c0c7c080bfc9ed01b53750e82afe
- Affected versionversion=0caf1120c58395108344d5df4e09359b67e95094 <cde6ca5872bf67744dffa875a7cb521ab007b7ef
- Affected versionversion=0caf1120c58395108344d5df4e09359b67e95094 <e3b3ec967a7d93b9010a5af9a2394c8b5c8f31ed
- Affected versionversion=6.0
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
No public exploit references are available in this record.
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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