CVE-2021-32846 Explained : Impact and Mitigation

The article provides detailed information about CVE-2021-32846, a vulnerability found in Moby HyperKit related to uninitialized memory use in virtio-sock pci_vtsock_proc_tx.

Understanding CVE-2021-32846

This section delves into the specifics of CVE-2021-32846, highlighting the vulnerability's impact and affected systems.

What is CVE-2021-32846?

CVE-2021-32846 is a vulnerability in Moby HyperKit's function

pci_vtsock_proc_tx

in

virtio-sock

versions 0.20210107, allowing for uninitialized memory use, potentially leading to denial of service and memory corruption.

The Impact of CVE-2021-32846

The issue may result in a guest crashing the host, causing a denial of service and, under certain circumstances, memory corruption, impacting system availability and integrity.

Technical Details of CVE-2021-32846

This section provides technical insights into the vulnerability, including its description, affected systems, and exploitation mechanism.

Vulnerability Description

In version 0.20210107 of Moby HyperKit, the

pci_vtsock_proc_tx

function in

virtio-sock

can lead to uninitialized memory use, potentially causing a denial of service and memory corruption.

Affected Systems and Versions

The vulnerability affects Moby HyperKit version 0.20210107, where uninitialized memory use in the

pci_vtsock_proc_tx

function can be exploited.

Exploitation Mechanism

By exploiting the uninitialized memory use in

virtio-sock

, attackers can crash the host-leading to denial of service, and potentially corrupting memory, exploiting this issue for malicious purposes.

Mitigation and Prevention

This section outlines steps to mitigate the vulnerability and prevent future occurrences.

Immediate Steps to Take

Users are advised to update Moby HyperKit to the latest version and follow best security practices to reduce the risk of exploitation.

Long-Term Security Practices

Implementing secure coding practices and regularly updating software can help prevent similar vulnerabilities from emerging in the future.

Patching and Updates

It is crucial to apply the provided fix in commit af5eba2360a7351c08dfd9767d9be863a50ebaba to address the vulnerability present in Moby HyperKit.