Local privilege escalation via stale vsock transport pointer
Published Nov 19, 2024 · Updated Aug 5, 2026
Use-after-free in Linux kernel 4.8 through 6.12-rc7 allows local users to gain kernel privileges through AF_VSOCK loopback. virtio_transport_destruct frees the virtio_vsock_sock referenced by vsk->trans without clearing that pointer, allowing a loopback worker to read and write the reclaimed object. An unprivileged local account can race an interrupted connect() against transport reassignment; successful exploitation modifies kernel memory, while failed attempts can hang or panic the host.
Summary
What happened
Use-after-free in Linux kernel 4.8 through 6.12-rc7 allows local users to gain kernel privileges through AF_VSOCK loopback. virtio_transport_destruct frees the virtio_vsock_sock referenced by vsk->trans without clearing that pointer, allowing a loopback worker to read and write the reclaimed object. An unprivileged local account can race an interrupted connect() against transport reassignment; successful exploitation modifies kernel memory, while failed attempts can hang or panic the host.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2024-50264
- Published
- Nov 19, 2024
- Updated
- Aug 5, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- CWE-416, T1068
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Nov 19, 2024CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 5, 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=06a8fc78367d070720af960dcecec917d3ae5f3b <2a6a4e69f255b7aed17f93995691ab4f0d3c2203
- Affected versionversion=06a8fc78367d070720af960dcecec917d3ae5f3b <44d29897eafd0e1196453d3003a4d5e0b968eeab
- Affected versionversion=06a8fc78367d070720af960dcecec917d3ae5f3b <5f092a4271f6dccf88fe0d132475a17b69ef71df
- Affected versionversion=06a8fc78367d070720af960dcecec917d3ae5f3b <5f970935d09934222fdef3d0e20c648ea7a963c1
- Affected versionversion=06a8fc78367d070720af960dcecec917d3ae5f3b <6ca575374dd9a507cdd16dfa0e78c2e9e20bd05f
- Affected versionversion=06a8fc78367d070720af960dcecec917d3ae5f3b <b110196fec44fe966952004bd426967c2a8fd358
- Affected versionversion=06a8fc78367d070720af960dcecec917d3ae5f3b <eb1bdcb7dfc30b24495ee4c5533af0ed135cb5f1
- Affected versionversion=06a8fc78367d070720af960dcecec917d3ae5f3b <fd8ae346692a56b4437d626c5460c7104980f389
- Affected versionversion=4.8
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
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Public exploit references
- kernelCTF CVE-2024-50264 local privilege-escalation exploitweaponized · validated
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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