CVE-2024-53681
📋 TL;DR
A buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the Linux kernel's NVMe over Fabrics target subsystem (nvmet). When processing subsystem NQN (NVMe Qualified Name) strings during discovery, the code incorrectly treats dynamically allocated buffers as fixed-size, potentially allowing memory corruption. This affects systems using NVMe over Fabrics with the nvmet module loaded.
💻 Affected Systems
- Linux kernel
📦 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 →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
Kernel panic or system crash leading to denial of service, or potential privilege escalation if combined with other vulnerabilities.
Likely Case
System instability or crash when processing malformed NVMe discovery requests, causing denial of service.
If Mitigated
Minimal impact if NVMe over Fabrics is not used or if access is restricted to trusted networks.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires sending specially crafted NVMe discovery requests to the target system.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Patches available in stable kernel trees (commits 4db3d750ac7e894278ef1cb1c53cc7d883060496 and 86645d8d062af3fdcbdaa0a289b95de55bca827d)
Vendor Advisory: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4db3d750ac7e894278ef1cb1c53cc7d883060496
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Update Linux kernel to patched version from your distribution. 2. Reboot system to load new kernel. 3. Verify nvmet module loads correctly.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable NVMe over Fabrics target
linuxUnload the nvmet kernel module to remove attack surface
sudo modprobe -r nvmet
Restrict network access
linuxUse firewall rules to limit access to NVMe over Fabrics ports (typically 4420/tcp)
sudo iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 4420 -j DROP
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Disable NVMe over Fabrics target functionality if not required
- Implement strict network segmentation to isolate NVMe storage traffic
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if nvmet module is loaded: lsmod | grep nvmetCheck Version:
uname -rVerify Fix Applied:
Check kernel version against patched versions from your distribution📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Kernel panic messages
- nvmet module crash logs in dmesg
- Unexpected system reboots
Network Indicators:
- Unusual traffic to port 4420/tcp
- Malformed NVMe discovery packets
SIEM Query:
source="kernel" AND "nvmet" AND ("panic" OR "Oops" OR "BUG")