Kernel crash via unconditional ATA port cleanup
Published Jul 29, 2024 · Updated May 11, 2026
NULL pointer dereference in Linux kernel libata allows local users to crash the kernel when ATA host allocation fails. ata_host_release unconditionally accesses and frees ata_port members after ata_port_alloc returns an allocation failure, leaving those members uninitialized. Reaching the faulty cleanup path requires an ATA port allocation failure during host setup; the resulting page fault interrupts the entire system rather than only the initiating process.
Summary
What happened
NULL pointer dereference in Linux kernel libata allows local users to crash the kernel when ATA host allocation fails. ata_host_release unconditionally accesses and frees ata_port members after ata_port_alloc returns an allocation failure, leaving those members uninitialized. Reaching the faulty cleanup path requires an ATA port allocation failure during host setup; the resulting page fault interrupts the entire system rather than only the initiating process.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2024-41098
- Published
- Jul 29, 2024
- Updated
- May 11, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- CWE-476, T1499
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jul 29, 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=2.6.24
- Affected versionversion=633273a3ed1cf37ced90475b0f95cf81deab04f1 <0f0d37c154bb108730c90a91aa31e3170e827962
- Affected versionversion=633273a3ed1cf37ced90475b0f95cf81deab04f1 <119c97ace2a9ffcf4dc09a23bb057d6c281aff28
- Affected versionversion=633273a3ed1cf37ced90475b0f95cf81deab04f1 <221e3b1297e74fdec32d0f572f4dcb2260a0a2af
- Affected versionversion=633273a3ed1cf37ced90475b0f95cf81deab04f1 <56e62977eaaae3eb7122ee2cf9b720b6703114a9
- Affected versionversion=633273a3ed1cf37ced90475b0f95cf81deab04f1 <5d92c7c566dc76d96e0e19e481d926bbe6631c1e
- Affected versionversion=633273a3ed1cf37ced90475b0f95cf81deab04f1 <8a8ff7e3b736a70d7b7c8764cbcd2724d4079ec8
- Affected versionversion=633273a3ed1cf37ced90475b0f95cf81deab04f1 <d9c4df80b1b009de1eb77c07e3bb4d45bd212aa5
- Affected versionversion=633273a3ed1cf37ced90475b0f95cf81deab04f1 <e83405e75d90694ee6a5d898f7f0473ac2686054
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
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Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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