BaseFortify

Publication date: 2025-10-07

Last updated on: 2026-03-17

Assigner: kernel.org

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: media: coda: Add check for kmalloc As the kmalloc may return NULL pointer, it should be better to check the return value in order to avoid NULL poineter dereference, same as the others.

CVSS Scores

EPSS Scores

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Meta Information

Published

2025-10-07

Last Modified

2026-03-17

Generated

2026-07-06

AI Q&A

2025-10-07

EPSS Evaluated

2026-07-05

NVD

CVE-2022-50509

Affected Vendors & Products

Vendor	Product	Version / Range
linux	linux_kernel	From 4.10 (inc) to 4.14.303 (inc)

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE

KEV

CWE ID	Description
CWE-476	The product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is NULL.

Attack-Flow Graph

Executive Summary

This vulnerability is related to the Linux kernel's media subsystem, specifically the coda component. The issue arises because the function kmalloc, which allocates memory, may return a NULL pointer if the allocation fails. The vulnerability exists because the code did not check if kmalloc returned NULL before using the pointer, which can lead to a NULL pointer dereference and potentially cause a system crash or instability. The fix involved adding a check for the kmalloc return value to prevent this.

Impact Analysis

If exploited or triggered, this vulnerability can cause a NULL pointer dereference in the Linux kernel, leading to a system crash or kernel panic. This can result in denial of service, making the system unstable or unavailable until rebooted or fixed.

Mitigation Strategies

To mitigate this vulnerability, update the Linux kernel to a version where the 'media: coda' component includes the check for kmalloc's return value to avoid NULL pointer dereference. Applying the latest kernel patches or updates that address this issue is recommended.

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