CVE-2023-52832

wifi: mac80211: don't return unset power in ieee80211_get_tx_power()

Critical · published May 21, 2024

CVSS v3.1
9.1
EPSS
1%
Percentile
69.4
In the wild
Unconfirmed
What it is

🔥 A signed-integer overflow in the Linux kernel could let the system misinterpret power settings, just waiting for a crafty attack to exploit it! Think of it like a faulty thermostat that keeps wrongly reporting temperatures — if it thinks it’s freezing when it’s really scorching, things can get out of control fast! If an attacker manages to leverage this bug, they could cause critical system instability, leading to unexpected failures or even crashes. This could compromise your entire wireless communication setup, disrupting connectivity and user experience. We’re talking about a potential nightmare for users and systems alike!

Put simply

Think of it like a faulty thermostat that keeps wrongly reporting temperatures — if it thinks it’s freezing when it’s really scorching, things can get out of control fast! This vulnerability arises when the ieee80211_get_tx_power() function returns an unset power level, specifically the INT_MIN value. This can trigger a signed-integer overflow warning, indicating that the internal values are mishandled.

What to do

If an attacker manages to leverage this bug, they could cause critical system instability, leading to unexpected failures or even crashes. This could compromise your entire wireless communication setup, disrupting connectivity and user experience. We’re talking about a potential nightmare for users and systems alike! To mitigate this risk, upgrade to the patched version of the Linux kernel as soon as possible. Modify the ieee80211_get_tx_power() function to return an error when no data is available instead of returning INT_MIN. Ensuring this fix is applied will bolster your system's security! You’ve got this! With these actions, you’ll fortify your wireless infrastructure and keep things running smoothly! 🛡️

The record
Technical detail
CVSS v3.1
9.1 · CRITICAL
Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H
CVSS v4.0
Not supplied
EPSS
0.01263 · 69.4th percentile
Published
2024-05-21T15:31Z
EPSS history
Timeline
  • 21 MAY 15:31Z
    wifi: mac80211: don't return unset power in ieee80211_get_tx_power()
    cvelistv5