Ubuntu 14.04 LTS / 16.04 LTS : Linux kernel (HWE) vulnerabilities (USN-3931-2)

high Nessus Plugin ID 123679

Synopsis

The remote Ubuntu host is missing one or more security updates.

Description

The remote Ubuntu 14.04 LTS / 16.04 LTS host has a package installed that is affected by multiple vulnerabilities as referenced in the USN-3931-2 advisory.

USN-3931-1 fixed vulnerabilities in the Linux kernel for Ubuntu 18.04 LTS. This update provides the corresponding updates for the Linux Hardware Enablement (HWE) kernel from Ubuntu 18.04 LTS for Ubuntu 16.04 LTS and for the Linux Azure kernel for Ubuntu 14.04 LTS.

M. Vefa Bicakci and Andy Lutomirski discovered that the kernel did not properly set up all arguments to an error handler callback used when running as a paravirtualized guest. An unprivileged attacker in a paravirtualized guest VM could use this to cause a denial of service (guest VM crash). (CVE-2018-14678)

It was discovered that the KVM implementation in the Linux kernel on ARM 64bit processors did not properly handle some ioctls. An attacker with the privilege to create KVM-based virtual machines could use this to cause a denial of service (host system crash) or execute arbitrary code in the host. (CVE-2018-18021)

Mathias Payer and Hui Peng discovered a use-after-free vulnerability in the Advanced Linux Sound Architecture (ALSA) subsystem. A physically proximate attacker could use this to cause a denial of service (system crash). (CVE-2018-19824)

Shlomi Oberman, Yuli Shapiro, and Ran Menscher discovered an information leak in the Bluetooth implementation of the Linux kernel. An attacker within Bluetooth range could use this to expose sensitive information (kernel memory). (CVE-2019-3459, CVE-2019-3460)

Jann Horn discovered that the KVM implementation in the Linux kernel contained a use-after-free vulnerability. An attacker in a guest VM with access to /dev/kvm could use this to cause a denial of service (guest VM crash). (CVE-2019-6974)

Jim Mattson and Felix Wilhelm discovered a use-after-free vulnerability in the KVM subsystem of the Linux kernel, when using nested virtual machines. A local attacker in a guest VM could use this to cause a denial of service (system crash) or possibly execute arbitrary code in the host system. (CVE-2019-7221)

Felix Wilhelm discovered that an information leak vulnerability existed in the KVM subsystem of the Linux kernel, when nested virtualization is used. A local attacker could use this to expose sensitive information (host system memory to a guest VM). (CVE-2019-7222)

Jann Horn discovered that the eBPF implementation in the Linux kernel was insufficiently hardened against Spectre V1 attacks. A local attacker could use this to expose sensitive information. (CVE-2019-7308)

It was discovered that a use-after-free vulnerability existed in the user- space API for crypto (af_alg) implementation in the Linux kernel. A local attacker could use this to cause a denial of service (system crash) or possibly execute arbitrary code. (CVE-2019-8912)

It was discovered that the Linux kernel did not properly deallocate memory when handling certain errors while reading files. A local attacker could use this to cause a denial of service (excessive memory consumption). (CVE-2019-8980)

Jann Horn discovered that the mmap implementation in the Linux kernel did not properly check for the mmap minimum address in some situations. A local attacker could use this to assist exploiting a kernel NULL pointer dereference vulnerability. (CVE-2019-9213)

Tenable has extracted the preceding description block directly from the Ubuntu security advisory.

Note that Nessus has not tested for these issues but has instead relied only on the application's self-reported version number.

Solution

Update the affected kernel package.

See Also

https://ubuntu.com/security/notices/USN-3931-2

Plugin Details

Severity: High

ID: 123679

File Name: ubuntu_USN-3931-2.nasl

Version: 1.12

Type: local

Agent: unix

Published: 4/3/2019

Updated: 8/27/2024

Supported Sensors: Agentless Assessment, Continuous Assessment, Frictionless Assessment Agent, Frictionless Assessment AWS, Frictionless Assessment Azure, Nessus Agent, Nessus

Risk Information

VPR

Risk Factor: Medium

Score: 6.7

CVSS v2

Risk Factor: High

Base Score: 7.2

Temporal Score: 6

Vector: CVSS2#AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

CVSS Score Source: CVE-2019-8912

CVSS v3

Risk Factor: High

Base Score: 8.1

Temporal Score: 7.5

Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Temporal Vector: CVSS:3.0/E:F/RL:O/RC:C

CVSS Score Source: CVE-2019-6974

Vulnerability Information

CPE: p-cpe:/a:canonical:ubuntu_linux:linux-image-4.15.0-1010-oracle, cpe:/o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:14.04:-:lts, p-cpe:/a:canonical:ubuntu_linux:linux-image-4.15.0-1041-azure, p-cpe:/a:canonical:ubuntu_linux:linux-image-4.15.0-1035-aws, cpe:/o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:16.04:-:lts, p-cpe:/a:canonical:ubuntu_linux:linux-image-4.15.0-1029-gcp, p-cpe:/a:canonical:ubuntu_linux:linux-image-4.15.0-47-lowlatency, p-cpe:/a:canonical:ubuntu_linux:linux-image-4.15.0-47-generic-lpae, p-cpe:/a:canonical:ubuntu_linux:linux-image-4.15.0-47-generic

Required KB Items: Host/cpu, Host/Ubuntu, Host/Ubuntu/release, Host/Debian/dpkg-l

Exploit Available: true

Exploit Ease: Exploits are available

Patch Publication Date: 4/2/2019

Vulnerability Publication Date: 7/28/2018

Exploitable With

Metasploit (Reliable Datagram Sockets (RDS) rds_atomic_free_op NULL pointer dereference Privilege Escalation)

Reference Information

CVE: CVE-2018-14678, CVE-2018-18021, CVE-2018-19824, CVE-2019-3459, CVE-2019-3460, CVE-2019-6974, CVE-2019-7221, CVE-2019-7222, CVE-2019-7308, CVE-2019-8912, CVE-2019-8980, CVE-2019-9213

USN: 3931-2