CVE-2024-38606

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

crypto: qat - validate slices count returned by FW

The function adf_send_admin_tl_start() enables the telemetry (TL) feature on a QAT device by sending the ICP_QAT_FW_TL_START message to the firmware. This triggers the FW to start writing TL data to a DMA buffer in memory and returns an array containing the number of accelerators of each type (slices) supported by this HW. The pointer to this array is stored in the adf_tl_hw_data data structure called slice_cnt.

The array slice_cnt is then used in the function tl_print_dev_data() to report in debugfs only statistics about the supported accelerators. An incorrect value of the elements in slice_cnt might lead to an out of bounds memory read. At the moment, there isnt an implementation of FW that returns a wrong value, but for robustness validate the slice count array returned by FW.

Weakness

The product reads data past the end, or before the beginning, of the intended buffer.

Affected Software

Potential Mitigations

• Assume all input is malicious. Use an “accept known good” input validation strategy, i.e., use a list of acceptable inputs that strictly conform to specifications. Reject any input that does not strictly conform to specifications, or transform it into something that does.
• When performing input validation, consider all potentially relevant properties, including length, type of input, the full range of acceptable values, missing or extra inputs, syntax, consistency across related fields, and conformance to business rules. As an example of business rule logic, “boat” may be syntactically valid because it only contains alphanumeric characters, but it is not valid if the input is only expected to contain colors such as “red” or “blue.”
• Do not rely exclusively on looking for malicious or malformed inputs. This is likely to miss at least one undesirable input, especially if the code’s environment changes. This can give attackers enough room to bypass the intended validation. However, denylists can be useful for detecting potential attacks or determining which inputs are so malformed that they should be rejected outright.
• To reduce the likelihood of introducing an out-of-bounds read, ensure that you validate and ensure correct calculations for any length argument, buffer size calculation, or offset. Be especially careful of relying on a sentinel (i.e. special character such as NUL) in untrusted inputs.

Related Attack Patterns

• https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/540.html

References

• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/483fd65ce29317044d1d00757e3fd23503b6b04c
• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9b284b915e2a5e63ca133353f8c456eff4446f82
• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e57ed345e2e6043629fc74aa5be051415dcc4f77
• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/483fd65ce29317044d1d00757e3fd23503b6b04c
• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9b284b915e2a5e63ca133353f8c456eff4446f82
• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e57ed345e2e6043629fc74aa5be051415dcc4f77