CVE-2022-49947
Unknown Unknown - Not Provided
BaseFortify

Publication date: 2025-06-18

Last updated on: 2025-11-14

Assigner: kernel.org

Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: binder: fix alloc->vma_vm_mm null-ptr dereference Syzbot reported a couple issues introduced by commit 44e602b4e52f ("binder_alloc: add missing mmap_lock calls when using the VMA"), in which we attempt to acquire the mmap_lock when alloc->vma_vm_mm has not been initialized yet. This can happen if a binder_proc receives a transaction without having previously called mmap() to setup the binder_proc->alloc space in [1]. Also, a similar issue occurs via binder_alloc_print_pages() when we try to dump the debugfs binder stats file in [2]. Sample of syzbot's crash report: ================================================================== KASAN: null-ptr-deref in range [0x0000000000000128-0x000000000000012f] CPU: 0 PID: 3755 Comm: syz-executor229 Not tainted 6.0.0-rc1-next-20220819-syzkaller #0 syz-executor229[3755] cmdline: ./syz-executor2294415195 Hardware name: Google Google Compute Engine/Google Compute Engine, BIOS Google 07/22/2022 RIP: 0010:__lock_acquire+0xd83/0x56d0 kernel/locking/lockdep.c:4923 [...] Call Trace: <TASK> lock_acquire kernel/locking/lockdep.c:5666 [inline] lock_acquire+0x1ab/0x570 kernel/locking/lockdep.c:5631 down_read+0x98/0x450 kernel/locking/rwsem.c:1499 mmap_read_lock include/linux/mmap_lock.h:117 [inline] binder_alloc_new_buf_locked drivers/android/binder_alloc.c:405 [inline] binder_alloc_new_buf+0xa5/0x19e0 drivers/android/binder_alloc.c:593 binder_transaction+0x242e/0x9a80 drivers/android/binder.c:3199 binder_thread_write+0x664/0x3220 drivers/android/binder.c:3986 binder_ioctl_write_read drivers/android/binder.c:5036 [inline] binder_ioctl+0x3470/0x6d00 drivers/android/binder.c:5323 vfs_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:51 [inline] __do_sys_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:870 [inline] __se_sys_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:856 [inline] __x64_sys_ioctl+0x193/0x200 fs/ioctl.c:856 do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/common.c:50 [inline] do_syscall_64+0x35/0xb0 arch/x86/entry/common.c:80 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x63/0xcd [...] ================================================================== Fix these issues by setting up alloc->vma_vm_mm pointer during open() and caching directly from current->mm. This guarantees we have a valid reference to take the mmap_lock during scenarios described above. [1] https://syzkaller.appspot.com/bug?extid=f7dc54e5be28950ac459 [2] https://syzkaller.appspot.com/bug?extid=a75ebe0452711c9e56d9
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Meta Information
Published
2025-06-18
Last Modified
2025-11-14
Generated
2026-05-07
AI Q&A
2025-06-18
EPSS Evaluated
2026-05-05
NVD
CVE-2022-49947
Affected Vendors & Products
Showing 3 associated CPEs
Vendor Product Version / Range
linux linux_kernel From 5.15.160 (inc) to 5.16 (inc)
linux linux_kernel From 5.15.160 (inc) to 5.16 (inc)
linux linux_kernel 6.0
Helpful Resources
Exploitability
CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-476 The product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is NULL.
Attack-Flow Graph
AI Powered Q&A
Can you explain this vulnerability to me?

This vulnerability in the Linux kernel's binder driver occurs because the code attempts to acquire a memory map lock (mmap_lock) using a pointer (alloc->vma_vm_mm) that has not been initialized yet, leading to a null-pointer dereference. This happens if a binder process receives a transaction without having previously set up its allocation space via mmap(), or when dumping debugfs binder stats. The issue was fixed by ensuring the alloc->vma_vm_mm pointer is properly set during open(), guaranteeing a valid reference for locking.


How can this vulnerability impact me? :

This vulnerability can cause the Linux kernel to crash due to a null-pointer dereference, potentially leading to denial of service. It may affect system stability and reliability, especially on systems using the binder driver for inter-process communication.


What immediate steps should I take to mitigate this vulnerability?

Apply the fix that sets up the alloc->vma_vm_mm pointer during open() and caches it directly from current->mm to ensure a valid reference for mmap_lock. This prevents null-pointer dereference issues described. Essentially, update your Linux kernel to a version that includes this fix.


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