CVE-2022-49050 – This CVE describes a memory leak vulnerability ... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2022-49050?

CVE-2022-49050 has a CVSS score of 5.5 (MEDIUM). This CVE describes a memory leak vulnerability in the Renesas RPC-IF driver in the Linux kernel. When platform device registration fails during driver probe, the flash platform device isn't properly freed, leading to resource exhaustion over time. This affects Linux systems using Renesas RPC-IF hardware.

📋 TL;DR

This CVE describes a memory leak vulnerability in the Renesas RPC-IF driver in the Linux kernel. When platform device registration fails during driver probe, the flash platform device isn't properly freed, leading to resource exhaustion over time. This affects Linux systems using Renesas RPC-IF hardware.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

Linux kernel with Renesas RPC-IF driver

Versions: Linux kernel versions before the fix commits (specific versions vary by distribution)

Operating Systems: Linux distributions using vulnerable kernel versions

Default Config Vulnerable: ✅ No

Notes: Only vulnerable when Renesas RPC-IF hardware is present and the driver is loaded; not all Linux systems are affected.

📦 What is this software?

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Sustained exploitation could lead to kernel memory exhaustion, causing system instability, denial of service, or potential kernel crashes.

🟠

Likely Case

Intermittent system instability or performance degradation due to gradual memory consumption when the driver encounters registration failures.

🟢

If Mitigated

Minimal impact with proper monitoring and memory limits in place; system remains functional but may require occasional restarts.

🌐 Internet-Facing: LOW - This is a local kernel driver issue requiring local access or specific hardware interaction.

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Internal systems with Renesas hardware could experience stability issues affecting operations.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ✅ No

Weaponized: NO

Unauthenticated Exploit: ✅ No

Complexity: MEDIUM

Exploitation requires triggering the specific error path during driver probe, which may require physical access or specific hardware conditions.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: Fixed in kernel commits: 05d1824a7fb43ab9adb1eb82404954af81d8c984, 66b9b707ea4dcafca92b6261c6924652914e3b73, b452dbf24d7d9a990d70118462925f6ee287d135, c089ffc846c85f200db34ad208338f4f81a6d82d

Vendor Advisory: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/05d1824a7fb43ab9adb1eb82404954af81d8c984

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Update Linux kernel to version containing the fix commits. 2. For distributions: Apply security updates from your vendor. 3. Reboot system to load patched kernel.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Disable Renesas RPC-IF driver

linux

Prevent loading of the vulnerable driver if Renesas hardware is not needed

echo 'blacklist rpc-if' >> /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Monitor kernel memory usage and system logs for memory leak indicators
Implement regular system reboots to clear accumulated memory leaks

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check if Renesas RPC-IF driver is loaded: lsmod | grep rpc-if && check kernel version against patched versions

Check Version:

uname -r

Verify Fix Applied:

Verify kernel version includes fix commits and driver loads without memory leak in dmesg

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Kernel oom-killer events
Increasing memory usage in /proc/meminfo
Driver probe failure messages in dmesg

Network Indicators:

None - this is a local kernel issue

SIEM Query:

source="kernel" AND ("oom-killer" OR "Out of memory" OR "rpc-if")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2022-49050

CVSS v3 Score: 5.5 (MEDIUM)

CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

CWE: CWE-401

EPSS Score: 0.04% exploit probability (10.5th percentile)

Published: February 26, 2025

Last Updated: September 23, 2025

🔗 References

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🔗 Related Vulnerabilities

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