CVE intelligence and bounded remediation
CVE-2016-7914 — Linux Linux Kernel security vulnerability
The assoc_array_insert_into_terminal_node function in lib/assoc_array.c in the Linux kernel before 4.5.3 does not check whether a slot is a leaf, which allows local users to obtain sensitive information from kernel memory or cause a denial of service (invalid pointer dereference and out-of-bounds read) via an application that uses associative-array data structures, as demonstrated by the keyutils test suite.
- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 7.1 (2.0)
- Published
- 2016-11-16
- CISA KEV
- Not currently listed
- Ecosystem
- linux/kernel
- Weaknesses
- CWE-125, CWE-476
Affected products
- linux / linux_kernel
Matched remediation archetype
Buffer bounds, memory safety, and memory corruption
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Check exposure
- Identify affected native-code versions, build flags, architectures, parsers, codecs, drivers, and input paths in all shipped artifacts.
- Determine whether untrusted data reaches the affected routine and the process privilege, sandbox, and network exposure.
- Confirm statically linked, vendored, firmware, and platform-provided copies, not only package-manager records.
Remediate safely
- Apply the maintained upstream correction or replace the affected component, then rebuild every dependent artifact from clean inputs.
- Adopt bounds-checked interfaces, validated sizes and integer conversions, clear ownership, and memory-safe components where practical.
- Enable supported compiler and runtime hardening and add sanitized tests and fuzz regression seeds derived from non-weaponized fixtures.
Authoritative sources
Complete CVE record and remediation plan
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