CVE-2020-10690 : What You Need to Know

A use-after-free vulnerability in kernel versions before 5.5 can lead to a system crash due to a race condition between the release of ptp_clock and cdev during resource deallocation.

Understanding CVE-2020-10690

This CVE involves a critical vulnerability in Red Hat's kernel versions before 5.5, impacting system availability and integrity.

What is CVE-2020-10690?

The vulnerability arises from a race condition during resource deallocation, causing a use-after-free issue when a process allocates a ptp device file and the underlying device is removed.

The Impact of CVE-2020-10690

The vulnerability has a CVSS base score of 6.5, with high impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. It requires high privileges and user interaction for exploitation.

Technical Details of CVE-2020-10690

This section delves into the specifics of the vulnerability.

Vulnerability Description

The use-after-free vulnerability occurs due to a race condition between the release of ptp_clock and cdev during resource deallocation, leading to a system crash.

Affected Systems and Versions

Product: Kernel
Vendor: Red Hat
Affected Versions: All kernel versions before 5.5

Exploitation Mechanism

A high privileged process allocates a ptp device file and goes to sleep voluntarily.
If the underlying device is removed during this time, it triggers the vulnerability.
The system crashes due to an invalid cdev structure pointed to by the inode.

Mitigation and Prevention

Protecting systems from CVE-2020-10690 requires immediate actions and long-term security practices.

Immediate Steps to Take

Apply patches provided by Red Hat or respective vendors promptly.
Monitor vendor advisories and security mailing lists for updates.
Restrict high privileges and user interactions to mitigate exploitation.

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly update and patch the kernel to the latest secure versions.
Implement least privilege principles to limit the impact of potential vulnerabilities.

Patching and Updates

Stay informed about security updates from Red Hat and other relevant vendors.
Apply patches and updates as soon as they are available to safeguard systems.