CVE-2022-50289 – This CVE describes a memory leak vulnerability ... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2022-50289?

CVE-2022-50289 has a CVSS score of 5.5 (MEDIUM). This CVE describes a memory leak vulnerability in the Linux kernel's ocfs2 filesystem module. When ocfs2_sysfs_init() fails during module initialization, ocfs2_stack_glue_init() doesn't properly free allocated memory, causing a kernel memory leak. This affects systems using the OCFS2 cluster filesystem.

📋 TL;DR

This CVE describes a memory leak vulnerability in the Linux kernel's ocfs2 filesystem module. When ocfs2_sysfs_init() fails during module initialization, ocfs2_stack_glue_init() doesn't properly free allocated memory, causing a kernel memory leak. This affects systems using the OCFS2 cluster filesystem.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

Linux kernel with OCFS2 support

Versions: Specific kernel versions with the vulnerable ocfs2 code (check git commits for exact ranges)

Operating Systems: Linux distributions with vulnerable kernel versions

Default Config Vulnerable: ✅ No

Notes: Only vulnerable if OCFS2 module is loaded/used. Many systems don't use OCFS2 by default.

📦 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...

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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 →

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 →

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, crashes, or denial of service through resource depletion.

🟠

Likely Case

Memory leak accumulates over time during OCFS2 module operations, potentially degrading system performance and requiring reboots to clear leaked memory.

🟢

If Mitigated

With proper monitoring and regular reboots, impact is limited to occasional performance degradation rather than system crashes.

🌐 Internet-Facing: LOW - This is a local kernel module issue requiring local access or module loading capability.

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Internal systems using OCFS2 cluster filesystems could experience stability issues affecting clustered services.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ✅ No

Weaponized: UNKNOWN

Unauthenticated Exploit: ✅ No

Complexity: MEDIUM

Exploitation requires ability to trigger OCFS2 module initialization failures, typically requiring local access and module loading privileges.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: Kernel versions containing the fix commits listed in references

Vendor Advisory: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0000281f019111526f7abccc61f2746d2eb626ca

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Update Linux kernel to patched version from your distribution. 2. Reboot system to load new kernel. 3. Verify OCFS2 module loads without memory leaks.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Disable OCFS2 module

all

Prevent loading of vulnerable OCFS2 module if not needed

echo 'blacklist ocfs2' >> /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf
rmmod ocfs2

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Monitor kernel memory usage and restart systems showing memory exhaustion
Avoid using OCFS2 filesystems until patched

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check if OCFS2 module is loaded: lsmod | grep ocfs2. Check kernel version against vulnerable ranges.

Check Version:

uname -r

Verify Fix Applied:

After patching, verify kernel version and test OCFS2 module loading while monitoring for memory leaks with tools like kmemleak.

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Kernel oom-killer messages
System logs showing memory exhaustion
kmemleak reports for ocfs2 allocations

Network Indicators:

None - this is a local kernel issue

SIEM Query:

source="kernel" AND ("oom" OR "memory" OR "ocfs2")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2022-50289

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: 0.01% exploit probability (1th percentile)

Published: September 15, 2025

Last Updated: December 3, 2025

🔗 References

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