Discover the impact of CVE-2019-20175, a vulnerability in QEMU versions 2.4.0 through 4.2.0. Learn about the exploitation mechanism and mitigation steps to secure your systems.
A vulnerability was found in the function ide_dma_cb() in the file hw/ide/core.c in QEMU versions 2.4.0 through 4.2.0. Exploiting this vulnerability, the guest system can cause a crash in the host system's QEMU process by using a specific SCSI_IOCTL_SEND_COMMAND. This particular exploit triggers an assertion, suggesting that the size of successful DMA transfers must be a multiple of 512, which is the size of a sector. It should be noted that a member of the QEMU security team disputes the significance of this issue, as a privileged guest user has various methods to cause a similar denial-of-service effect without triggering the mentioned assertion.
Understanding CVE-2019-20175
This section provides insights into the nature and impact of the CVE-2019-20175 vulnerability.
What is CVE-2019-20175?
CVE-2019-20175 is a vulnerability in the function ide_dma_cb() in QEMU versions 2.4.0 through 4.2.0. It allows a guest system to crash the host system's QEMU process by exploiting a specific SCSI_IOCTL_SEND_COMMAND.
The Impact of CVE-2019-20175
The vulnerability can lead to a denial-of-service effect by causing a crash in the host system's QEMU process. Despite the assertion triggered, a privileged guest user can achieve a similar effect through alternative methods.
Technical Details of CVE-2019-20175
This section delves into the technical aspects of CVE-2019-20175.
Vulnerability Description
The vulnerability resides in the function ide_dma_cb() in the file hw/ide/core.c in QEMU versions 2.4.0 through 4.2.0. It allows a guest system to crash the host system's QEMU process using a specific SCSI_IOCTL_SEND_COMMAND.
Affected Systems and Versions
Exploitation Mechanism
Mitigation and Prevention
This section outlines steps to mitigate and prevent the CVE-2019-20175 vulnerability.
Immediate Steps to Take
Long-Term Security Practices
Patching and Updates