Kernel crash via unchecked allocation failure
Published Sep 11, 2024 · Updated May 11, 2026
NULL pointer dereference in Linux 2.6.27 and later affected branches allows local users to crash the kernel through the MMC test interface. In drivers/mmc/core/mmc_test.c, the allocation-error path passes the NULL test->highmem pointer to __free_pages(). Reaching the fault requires local low-privileged access, the MMC test path, and a high-memory page-allocation failure; the consequence is an availability-only kernel crash.
Summary
What happened
NULL pointer dereference in Linux 2.6.27 and later affected branches allows local users to crash the kernel through the MMC test interface. In drivers/mmc/core/mmc_test.c, the allocation-error path passes the NULL test->highmem pointer to __free_pages(). Reaching the fault requires local low-privileged access, the MMC test path, and a high-memory page-allocation failure; the consequence is an availability-only kernel crash.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2024-45028
- Published
- Sep 11, 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
- Sep 11, 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=2.6.27
- Affected versionversion=2661081f5ab9cb25359d27f88707a018cf4e68e9 <2b507b03991f44dfb202fc2a82c9874d1b1f0c06
- Affected versionversion=2661081f5ab9cb25359d27f88707a018cf4e68e9 <3b4e76ceae5b5a46c968bd952f551ce173809f63
- Affected versionversion=2661081f5ab9cb25359d27f88707a018cf4e68e9 <9b9ba386d7bfdbc38445932c90fa9444c0524bea
- Affected versionversion=2661081f5ab9cb25359d27f88707a018cf4e68e9 <a1e627af32ed60713941cbfc8075d44cad07f6dd
- Affected versionversion=2661081f5ab9cb25359d27f88707a018cf4e68e9 <cac2815f49d343b2f0acc4973d2c14918ac3ab0c
- Affected versionversion=2661081f5ab9cb25359d27f88707a018cf4e68e9 <e40515582141a9e7c84b269be699c05236a499a6
- Affected versionversion=2661081f5ab9cb25359d27f88707a018cf4e68e9 <e97be13a9f51284da450dd2a592e3fa87b49cdc9
- Affected versionversion=2661081f5ab9cb25359d27f88707a018cf4e68e9 <ecb15b8ca12c0cbdab81e307e9795214d8b90890
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
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Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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