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NVD / CVE Program· CNA Linux

CVE-2022-49568: KVM: Don't null dereference ops->destroy

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 22/100)

  • The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.29% (FIRST EPSS).
  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it. A low-privileged account is enough. No user action is required. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
  • Fixed version: Linux Linux 170465715a60cbb7876e6b961b21bd3225469da8, 3616776bc51cd3262bb1be60cc01c72e0a1959cf, d4a5a79b780891c5cbdfdc6124d46fdf8d13dba1.

Low priority for now. Upgrade to Linux Linux 170465715a60cbb7876e6b961b21bd3225469da8, 3616776bc51cd3262bb1be60cc01c72e0a1959cf, d4a5a79b780891c5cbdfdc6124d46fdf8d13dba1 or later.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: Don't null dereference ops->destroy A KVM device cleanup happens in either of two callbacks: 1) destroy() which is called when the VM is being destroyed; 2) release() which is called when a device fd is closed. Most KVM devices use 1) but Book3s's interrupt controller KVM devices (XICS, XIVE, XIVE-native) use 2) as they need to close and reopen during the machine execution. The error handling in kvm_ioctl_create_device() assumes destroy() is always defined which leads to NULL dereference as discovered by Syzkaller. This adds a checks for destroy!=NULL and adds a missing release(). This is not changing kvm_destroy_devices() as devices with defined release() should have been removed from the KVM devices list by then.

MediumCVSS 5.5 · v3.1—No exploit Fix available
Published
Feb 26, 2025
Updated
Jun 17, 2026
EPSS
0.2% · 22th percentile

Report tools

JSON

Action score

22

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
22 / 40 · 5.5 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
0 / 30 · 0.2%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
none
Automatable
no
Technical impact
partial

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

Get told when this record changes

  • Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
  • No public exploit code on record
  • A fix has been released

If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.

Follow CVE-2022-49568

When you'll hear from us

  • when it enters CISA KEV
  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
  • when the record is updated (including a fixed version)
  • when EPSS rises 20 points in a week

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Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.

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Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

VendorProduct
linuxlinux kernel

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • linux linux kernelbefore 5.4.210
  • linux linux kernel5.5 and later · before 5.10.134
  • linux linux kernel5.11 and later · before 5.15.58
  • linux linux kernel5.16 and later · before 5.18.15
  • linux linux kernel5.19

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (Linux). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • Linux Linux

    • 3.10affected
    • 852b6d57dc7fa378019786fa84727036e56839ea and later · before 170465715a60cbb7876e6b961b21bd3225469da8affected · git
    • 852b6d57dc7fa378019786fa84727036e56839ea and later · before 3616776bc51cd3262bb1be60cc01c72e0a1959cfaffected · git
    • 852b6d57dc7fa378019786fa84727036e56839ea and later · before e91665fbbf3ccb268b268a7d71a6513538d813acaffected · git
    • 852b6d57dc7fa378019786fa84727036e56839ea and later · before d4a5a79b780891c5cbdfdc6124d46fdf8d13dba1affected · git
    • 852b6d57dc7fa378019786fa84727036e56839ea and later · before e8bc2427018826e02add7b0ed0fc625a60390ae5affected · git
    • before 3.10not affected · semver
    • 5.4.210 and later · up to and including 5.4.*not affected · semver
    • 5.10.134 and later · up to and including 5.10.*not affected · semver
    • 5.15.58 and later · up to and including 5.15.*not affected · semver

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

EcosystemPackageAffected rangeFix
Debian:12linuxbefore 5.18.16-15.18.16-1

Same product

linux: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2026-31431crypto: algif_aead - Revert to operating out-of-placeKEV
    90Now
  • CVE-2022-0847A flaw was found in the way the "flags" member of the new pipe buffer structure was lacking proper initialization in copy_page_to_iter_pipe KEV
    89Now
  • CVE-2021-22555Heap Out-Of-Bounds Write in Netfilter IP6T_SO_SET_REPLACEKEV
    85Now

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2022-49566Feb 26, 2025 · crypto: qat - fix memory leak in RSA
    22Monitor
  • ← EarlierCVE-2022-49567Feb 26, 2025 · mm/mempolicy: fix uninit-value in mpol_rebind_policy()
    22Monitor
  • Later →CVE-2022-49569Feb 26, 2025 · spi: bcm2835: bcm2835_spi_handle_err(): fix NULL pointer deref for non DMA transfers
    22Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

Product / packageFixed versionSource
Linux Linux170465715a60cbb7876e6b961b21bd3225469da8Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux3616776bc51cd3262bb1be60cc01c72e0a1959cfVendor (CNA)
Linux Linuxd4a5a79b780891c5cbdfdc6124d46fdf8d13dba1Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linuxe8bc2427018826e02add7b0ed0fc625a60390ae5Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linuxe91665fbbf3ccb268b268a7d71a6513538d813acVendor (CNA)
debian:linux5.18.16-1 · Debian:12Package registry (OSV)

Exploit status

No known public exploit

No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

No dated events beyond publication.

No history yet (it accumulates with the daily EPSS job).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it.
  • A low-privileged account is enough.
  • No user action is required.
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality
none
Integrity
none
Availability
high · the service can be disrupted
Attack vector
Local
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
None
Integrity impact
None
Availability impact
High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-476 · NULL Pointer Dereference

CVSS vector

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

nvd-primary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.

Change log

  1. Fix✗ → ✓

For records you follow, these changes also arrive as notifications. →

References

Show all references (4 more)

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records