CVE-2024-46871
📋 TL;DR
This CVE is an out-of-bounds array access vulnerability in the AMD GPU display driver (drm/amd/display) in the Linux kernel. An attacker could potentially cause memory corruption leading to system crashes or privilege escalation. Systems using AMD GPUs with affected Linux kernel versions are vulnerable.
💻 Affected Systems
- Linux kernel with AMD GPU display driver (drm/amd/display)
📦 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 →⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Kernel memory corruption leading to privilege escalation, system crash, or arbitrary code execution with kernel privileges.
Likely Case
System instability, kernel panic, or denial of service through crashes.
If Mitigated
Limited impact if proper kernel hardening and memory protection mechanisms are enabled.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires triggering the vulnerable display driver code path, which may require specific GPU operations or privileged access.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Linux kernel versions containing the fix commits: 800a5ab673c4a61ca220cce177386723d91bdb37, 9f404b0bc2df3880758fb3c3bc7496f596f347d7, ad28d7c3d989fc5689581664653879d664da76f0, c592b6355b9b57b8e59fc5978ce1e14f64488a98, e1896f381d27466c26cb44b4450eae05cd59dfd0
Vendor Advisory: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/800a5ab673c4a61ca220cce177386723d91bdb37
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Update Linux kernel to version containing the fix commits. 2. Reboot system to load patched kernel. 3. Verify AMDGPU driver is using patched code.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable AMDGPU driver
linuxRemove or blacklist the AMDGPU kernel module to prevent loading of vulnerable code
echo 'blacklist amdgpu' >> /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist-amdgpu.conf
update-initramfs -u
reboot
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict local user access to systems with AMD GPUs
- Implement strict process isolation and limit GPU operations to trusted applications
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if AMDGPU driver is loaded and kernel version is vulnerable: lsmod | grep amdgpu && uname -rCheck Version:
uname -rVerify Fix Applied:
Verify kernel version includes fix commits and AMDGPU driver loads without errors in dmesg📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Kernel panic messages
- AMDGPU driver crash logs in dmesg
- Out-of-bounds memory access warnings
Network Indicators:
- None - local vulnerability
SIEM Query:
source="kernel" AND ("panic" OR "Oops" OR "BUG") AND "amdgpu"🔗 References
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/800a5ab673c4a61ca220cce177386723d91bdb37
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9f404b0bc2df3880758fb3c3bc7496f596f347d7
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ad28d7c3d989fc5689581664653879d664da76f0
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c592b6355b9b57b8e59fc5978ce1e14f64488a98
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e1896f381d27466c26cb44b4450eae05cd59dfd0
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2025/01/msg00001.html
