CIFS mount disruption via unset SMB3.02 cipher state
Published Dec 27, 2024 · Updated Aug 5, 2026
NULL pointer dereference in the Linux kernel CIFS client allows remote attackers to disrupt SMB mounts through crafted SMB3.02 server replies. The smb2pdu.c negotiation path leaves server->cipher_type unset for SMB3.02, so its allocation guard skips smb3_crypto_aead_allocate and crypto_aead_setkey dereferences a null transform. A malicious or compromised SMB server, redirected DFS referral, or man-in-the-middle attacker can cause an unusable mount or kernel panic when encryption is forced.
Summary
What happened
NULL pointer dereference in the Linux kernel CIFS client allows remote attackers to disrupt SMB mounts through crafted SMB3.02 server replies. The smb2pdu.c negotiation path leaves server->cipher_type unset for SMB3.02, so its allocation guard skips smb3_crypto_aead_allocate and crypto_aead_setkey dereferences a null transform. A malicious or compromised SMB server, redirected DFS referral, or man-in-the-middle attacker can cause an unusable mount or kernel panic when encryption is forced.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2024-53185
- Published
- Dec 27, 2024
- Updated
- Aug 5, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- T1499.004
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Dec 27, 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
Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.
Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=0809fb86ad13b29e1d6d491364fc7ea4fb545995 <46f8e25926817272ec8d5bfbd003569bdeb9a8c8
- Affected versionversion=538c26d9bf70c90edc460d18c81008a4e555925a <22127c1dc04364cda3da812161e70921e6c3c0af
- Affected versionversion=6.11.4 <6.11.11
- Affected versionversion=6.12
- Affected versionversion=6.6.57 <6.6.64
- Affected versionversion=8f14a476abba13144df5434871a7225fd29af633 <92c5b62879073b489793a067dbe8d4f2728cdcad
- Affected versionversion=b0abcd65ec545701b8793e12bc27dc98042b151a <4bdec0d1f658f7c98749bd2c5a486e6cfa8565d2
- Affected versionversion=b0abcd65ec545701b8793e12bc27dc98042b151a <9b8904b53b5ace0519c74cd89fc3ca763f3856d4
- Affected versionversion=bce966530fd5542bbb422cb45ecb775f7a1a6bc3 <44c495818d9c4a741ab9e6bc9203ccc9f55f6f40
- Affected versionversion=ef51c0d544b1518b35364480317ab6d3468f205d <4a788ebbb10db9da453d52eaf44a41c13dc446df
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
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
See the directory against your own environment.
Your stack
Check the software in your environment
Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.
Book a demo