CVE-2018-20168 : Security Advisory and Response

Google gVisor before August 22, 2018, allows attackers to trigger a denial of service attack through a crafted application.

Understanding CVE-2018-20168

Google gVisor had a vulnerability that could be exploited to cause a denial of service attack.

What is CVE-2018-20168?

Prior to August 22, 2018, an earlier version of Google gVisor reused a pagetable at a different level while preserving the paging-structure cache. This allowed attackers to launch a denial of service attack by using a maliciously designed application that triggers a "physical address not valid" panic.

The Impact of CVE-2018-20168

This vulnerability could be exploited by attackers to disrupt the normal operation of Google gVisor, potentially leading to service unavailability.

Technical Details of CVE-2018-20168

Google gVisor's vulnerability is described in detail below:

Vulnerability Description

The vulnerability in Google gVisor before August 22, 2018, allowed attackers to reuse a pagetable at a different level, enabling a denial of service attack.

Affected Systems and Versions

Product: Google gVisor
Vendor: Google
Versions affected: All versions before August 22, 2018

Exploitation Mechanism

Attackers could exploit this vulnerability by using a crafted application to trigger a "physical address not valid" panic, causing a denial of service.

Mitigation and Prevention

To address CVE-2018-20168, consider the following steps:

Immediate Steps to Take

Update Google gVisor to a version released after August 22, 2018.
Monitor for any unusual system behavior that could indicate a denial of service attack.

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly update software and apply security patches to prevent known vulnerabilities.
Implement network security measures to detect and block malicious traffic.

Patching and Updates

Google gVisor users should ensure they are running a version released after August 22, 2018, to mitigate the vulnerability.