CVE-2024-25742
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability allows an untrusted hypervisor to inject virtual interrupt 29 (#VC) at any time in AMD SEV-SNP and SEV-ES environments, potentially disrupting guest VM operations. It affects Linux kernel versions before 6.9 running on AMD processors with these security features enabled. The vulnerability could be exploited by a malicious hypervisor to interfere with secure virtual machine execution.
💻 Affected Systems
- Linux kernel
⚠️ Manual Verification Required
This CVE does not have specific version information in our database, so automatic vulnerability detection cannot determine if your system is affected.
Why? The CVE database entry doesn't specify which versions are vulnerable (no version ranges provided by the vendor/NVD).
🔒 Custom verification scripts are available for registered users. Sign up free to download automated test scripts.
- Review the CVE details at NVD
- Check vendor security advisories for your specific version
- Test if the vulnerability is exploitable in your environment
- Consider updating to the latest version as a precaution
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
A malicious hypervisor could cause denial of service, disrupt secure VM operations, or potentially lead to information disclosure in AMD SEV-SNP/SEV-ES environments.
Likely Case
Denial of service or disruption of secure VM operations in cloud environments where untrusted hypervisors could exploit this vulnerability.
If Mitigated
Minimal impact if systems are patched or not using AMD SEV-SNP/SEV-ES features.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires hypervisor-level access and specific AMD SEV-SNP/SEV-ES configurations. No public exploits have been reported.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Linux kernel 6.9 and later
Vendor Advisory: https://www.amd.com/en/resources/product-security/bulletin/amd-sb-3008.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Update Linux kernel to version 6.9 or later. 2. For distributions using backported patches, apply the specific kernel security update. 3. Reboot the system to load the new kernel.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable AMD SEV-SNP/SEV-ES
linuxDisable AMD SEV-SNP and SEV-ES features if not required, which removes the vulnerable component.
Modify kernel boot parameters to disable SEV features: add 'sev=off' to GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX in /etc/default/grub
Run: sudo update-grub
Reboot system
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Isolate systems using AMD SEV-SNP/SEV-ES from untrusted hypervisors
- Implement strict access controls for hypervisor management interfaces
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check kernel version with 'uname -r' and verify it's below 6.9. Check if SEV-SNP/SEV-ES is enabled with 'dmesg | grep -i sev'.Check Version:
uname -rVerify Fix Applied:
Verify kernel version is 6.9 or later with 'uname -r'. Check that the commit e3ef461af35a8c74f2f4ce6616491ddb355a208f is included in your kernel.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unexpected #VC interrupt logs in kernel messages
- SEV/SEV-ES/SEV-SNP related error messages in dmesg
Network Indicators:
- No specific network indicators - this is a hypervisor-level vulnerability
SIEM Query:
No specific SIEM query - monitor for kernel panic logs or SEV-related errors in system logs🔗 References
- https://cdn.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v6.x/ChangeLog-6.9
- https://git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=e3ef461af35a8c74f2f4ce6616491ddb355a208f
- https://github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/e3ef461af35a8c74f2f4ce6616491ddb355a208f
- https://www.amd.com/en/resources/product-security/bulletin/amd-sb-3008.html
- https://cdn.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v6.x/ChangeLog-6.9
- https://git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=e3ef461af35a8c74f2f4ce6616491ddb355a208f
- https://github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/e3ef461af35a8c74f2f4ce6616491ddb355a208f
- https://www.amd.com/en/resources/product-security/bulletin/amd-sb-3008.html
