[CVE-2024-52332][MODERATE REGULAR] igb: Fix potential invalid memory access in igb_init_module() [ Upstream

[AL-KERNEL <alkernel@kernelcve.org>]

CVE: CVE-2024-52332
Priority: MODERATE REGULAR
AL-KERNEL base severity: MODERATE
KPANIC flag: NO
Patch: igb: Fix potential invalid memory access in igb_init_module() [ Upstream
Commit: 4458046617dfadc351162dbaea1945c57eebdf36
Upstream patch: https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git/commit/?id=4458046617dfadc351162dbaea1945c57eebdf36
Original CVE announcement: https://lore.kernel.org/linux-cve-announce/?q=CVE-2024-52332
Analysis date: Mon, 12 Oct 2026 21:40:26 -0400
ActionableScore: 3
ActionableScore lower bound: unknown
Actionable bucket: Borderline / manual review recommended
Manual review required: YES

Summary:
No one-sentence report phrase was found.

======================================================================
ABOUT THIS REPORT
======================================================================

The original Linux kernel CVE announcement for CVE-2024-52332 is available here:
https://lore.kernel.org/linux-cve-announce/?q=CVE-2024-52332

The original announcement does not normally provide a security severity
estimate, CVSS assessment, or enough information to determine whether the
reported kernel bug represents a practically relevant security issue.

This report was generated by AL-KERNEL, an AI-assisted Linux kernel
vulnerability analysis system developed by Alexander Larkin. It combines
an autonomous classifier with LLM-assisted technical analysis and a
separate ActionableScore mechanism.

The purpose of this report is to prioritize Linux kernel CVEs before
manual review, identify cases that require prompt investigation, and
support automatic closure of issues that are unlikely to have meaningful
security impact.

Published priority for this report: MODERATE REGULAR
Manual review required: YES

A detailed explanation of the methodology and priority rules is included
at the end of this message.

======================================================================
AL-KERNEL CLASSIFICATION RESULT
======================================================================

CVE-2024-52332	MODERATE	https://www.kernelcve.org/list/?q=CVE-2024-52332 CHECK WITH IMPACT FROM ORIG NN MODERATE | AEGIS IMPACT MODERATE_KPANIC AEGIS_AS=1 LEGACY=MODERATE RESULT=DIFF (independent Legacy and Aegis differ; FINAL: MODERATE, Aegis: MODERATE_KPANIC)	Maybe valid. Check manually. Hints by AL-KERNEL: The best (paranoid) CVSS is 'AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H';*CWE-416;*CWE-672;CWE-459;Other CVSS 'AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H';BEST CVSS score: '6.4';DESCR 'If pci_register_driver() fails after dca_register_notify(), the igb DCA notifier remains linked even though module initialization has failed. A later DCA notification may access the stale notifier block or invoke a callback whose module code has already been unloaded, resulting in invalid memory access and at least a kernel crash. Because the retained object includes a callback pointer, reuse of the released module memory creates a plausible but unproven path to broader memory corruption or control flow impact. For the CVSS the PR:H reflects that reliable triggering normally requires administrative control over module loading, PCI driver state, or DCA provider events. AC:H reflects the required driver registration failure followed by a later notifier event. The issue is local and is not directly reachable through ordinary network traffic. Impact is at least denial of service and in the paranoid interpretation may include confidentiality and integrity impact through stale callback execution.';YES REQUIRES MANUAL CHECK; ,and ActionableScore result is Borderline / manual review recommended (with actual score 3)	MAYBE	REMOTE INIT SIMPLEFIX NETWORK LINUS  DECREASED_TO_MODERATEREG_BASED_ON_ACTIONABLESCORELESSTHAN4	-	-	checked

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ACTIONABLESCORE ANALYSIS
======================================================================

ActionableScore=3
PrimitiveClass=CLASS_B
RealUAF=YES
HostAdminRequired=UNKNOWN
NamespaceScopedPrivilege=UNKNOWN
ImportantCandidate=NO
ManualReview=RECOMMENDED
AutoDowngradeAllowed=YES
RequiresHostUID0=UNKNOWN
AuthorizationDecisionBypass=NO
ProtectedResourceImpact=NONE
B4PendingReview=NO
B4PendingConfirmed=NO

1. ActionableScore

* Raw conservative score: 3
* Conservative score: 3
* Raw paranoid score: 3
* Paranoid score: 3
* No floor or cap was applied. The stale notifier is real, but controlled replacement, callback-pointer control, and below-host-admin reachability are not established.
* Final recommended bucket: **Borderline / manual review recommended**::

2. Signal breakdown

Positive signals:

* +2 Real UAF or equivalent lifetime violation. `dca_notifier` remains registered after `igb_init_module()` fails. Failed module initialization permits module memory to be released while the DCA chain retains a reference to the notifier.
* +1 Realistic kernel crash or strong DoS. A later notification traverses stale module storage and may read an invalid notifier or invoke a callback in unloaded module text.

Negative signals:

* No negative points. Host-admin privilege, unusual hardware, and difficult timing are not sufficiently established to justify penalties.

Important non-awarded signals:

* Controlled reclaim or attacker-shaped replacement of module memory is not demonstrated.
* Callback execution is involved, but attacker influence over the stale `notifier_call` value is not established. Strong callback-control leverage is therefore not awarded.
* Structured stale-object leverage is not awarded because no meaningful attacker control over reuse or post-free contents is shown.
* Arbitrary or directed kernel write is not demonstrated.
* Confidentiality, integrity, privilege escalation, and information disclosure are not demonstrated.
* No additional Availability point is awarded for the same invalid-access crash.
* Remote reachability and an ordinary local-user trigger are not established.
* B5-R does not apply because there is no retry-accumulated heap OOB write.
* B3-PENDING does not apply because there is no shared-backing write.
* B4-PENDING does not apply because no authorization decision changes from DENY to ALLOW.
* There is no repeated release or refcount operation on the same dangling reference. The dedicated repeated-release point and Floor 5 do not apply.

3. Reachability analysis

The vulnerable state is created when `dca_register_notify()` succeeds but `pci_register_driver()` fails. A later DCA notification then consumes the stale registration.

The supplied evidence does not establish which attacker can reliably cause both the PCI registration failure and the subsequent DCA event. Explicit module loading and device-management operations commonly require administrative capabilities, but automatic driver loading and system-generated DCA events prevent positively concluding that host-admin control is mandatory for every occurrence. Therefore, `HostAdminRequired` remains `UNKNOWN` rather than being assigned either YES or NO.

No namespace-scoped capability path is shown. There is no evidence that an attacker-created user or network namespace can perform the complete sequence. No direct packet-triggered path is established, and ordinary network traffic through an igb interface is insufficient evidence of reachability.

The issue requires `CONFIG_IGB_DCA`, a failed igb PCI-driver registration, retention of the notifier, and a later DCA notification. This is an ordered failure sequence rather than a demonstrated timing race, so no hard-race penalty is applied.

4. Primitive and severity interpretation

The exact primitive is a stale post-lifetime notifier registration. The notifier block resides in module memory and remains reachable through the DCA notifier chain after failed module initialization permits that memory to be released. Later chain traversal can dereference stale structured fields and attempt indirect invocation through `notifier_call`.

This is an active structured lifetime violation rather than a mere resource leak. It is `CLASS_B`, not `CLASS_A`, because the evidence establishes a stale notifier and invalid access but does not establish controlled reclaim, attacker-controlled callback replacement, arbitrary kernel read or write, or privilege escalation.

The demonstrated consequence is invalid memory access with a plausible kernel Oops or crash. A stronger consequence through module-memory reuse and altered callback contents is theoretically possible, but the supplied evidence does not establish attacker influence over that reuse. Paranoid scoring therefore cannot add a leverage point solely from generic reclaim speculation.

`ImportantCandidate=NO` because the currently established primitive is constrained to stale module registration and likely crash behavior without meaningful demonstrated reuse control. `AutoDowngradeAllowed=YES` because no concrete exploitation primitive beyond the stale access remains unresolved. Manual review is still recommended because indirect callback dispatch through unloaded module memory deserves verification against the DCA notifier implementation and module-memory reuse behavior.

5. One-sentence report phrase

A failed igb driver registration can leave a DCA notifier pointing into released module memory, allowing a later DCA event to cause stale structured access or invocation of unloaded callback code and crash the kernel.

6. Manual review recommendation

MANUAL CHECK RECOMMENDED

Verify the DCA notifier traversal and module-memory release sequence, particularly whether any realistic below-host-admin path can trigger the later notification or influence reuse of the stale notifier storage.

7. Call-site confidence

Call-site confidence: medium

======================================================================
UPSTREAM PATCH SUMMARY
======================================================================

Patch: igb: Fix potential invalid memory access in igb_init_module() [ Upstream
Commit: 4458046617dfadc351162dbaea1945c57eebdf36
Upstream URL: https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git/commit/?id=4458046617dfadc351162dbaea1945c57eebdf36

Changed files:
  drivers/net/ethernet/intel/igb/igb_main.c

Diff excerpt:

Not included in this email. See the upstream URL for the full patch.

Full patch:
https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git/commit/?id=4458046617dfadc351162dbaea1945c57eebdf36

======================================================================
DETAILED REPORT METHODOLOGY
======================================================================

The original Linux kernel CVE announcement for CVE-2024-52332 can be found here:
https://lore.kernel.org/linux-cve-announce/?q=CVE-2024-52332

The original CVE announcement normally does not include a security-level
estimate. In particular, it may not contain a CVSS assessment, an impact
level, or enough information to determine whether the reported bug is a
practically relevant security issue. One purpose of this parallel CVE list
is to provide that missing technical and prioritization information.

The original goal of the AL-KERNEL project was to prioritize Linux kernel
CVE analysis automatically before manual review. The system can also help
identify non-security issues that may be suitable for automatic closure.

This report was generated by AL-KERNEL, an AI-assisted Linux kernel
vulnerability analysis system developed by Alexander Larkin.

The first analysis stage combines an autonomous classifier with additional
LLM-based analysis. The autonomous classifier runs locally on a CPU and is
based on a backpropagation neural network. Together, these mechanisms
produce a technical vulnerability description, identify likely weakness
types, estimate CVSS severity, and provide input for ActionableScore.

Two CVSS estimates are retained because incomplete kernel vulnerability
information often permits more than one defensible interpretation:

  Conservative CVSS vector: AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
  The Best / paranoid CVSS vector: AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
  The Best / paranoid CVSS score: 6.4

The conservative vector represents a lower-impact interpretation.
The Best/paranoid vector intentionally represents a plausible upper-bound
interpretation and should not automatically be treated as demonstrated
real-world impact.

CVSS may also need to be adjusted for a particular Linux deployment,
because actual reachability, privileges, enabled kernel configuration,
hardware, namespaces, exposed device nodes, and other environmental
conditions can differ significantly between systems.

A separate ActionableScore mechanism evaluates practical remediation
urgency. Its analysis may include reachability, attack prerequisites,
subsystem exposure, memory-corruption characteristics, denial-of-service
reliability, and possible confidentiality, integrity, or
privilege-escalation impact.

  Conservative ActionableScore: unknown
  Paranoid ActionableScore: 3

The final base severity is taken directly from the second tab-separated
field of the AL-KERNEL classification result. ActionableScore does not
replace or independently override that final AL-KERNEL decision, and
if ActionableScore adjusted impact level of ALKERNEL, then you would see
self-readable flags above like INCREASED_TO_HIGH_BASED_ON_ACTIONABLESCOREHIGHEREQTHAN7.

For an AL-KERNEL result of MODERATE, this report uses the following
additional presentation split:

  ActionableScore below 5   -> MODERATE REGULAR
  ActionableScore 5 or more -> MODERATE 7.0

The distinction between MODERATE REGULAR and MODERATE 7.0 makes it
possible to identify Moderate issues that should receive manual analysis
and fixes before lower-priority MODERATE REGULAR issues. In many cases,
MODERATE REGULAR fixes may wait for a later rebase or routine update.

There is one override in which MODERATE REGULAR becomes MODERATE 7.0
even when the ActionableScore is below 5. When the AL-KERNEL result
contains the KPANIC flag, a MODERATE result is always presented as
MODERATE 7.0. The KPANIC flag selected with few regexps without
usage of AI at all, so it helps to detect cases when Kernel Crash happens
and similar (to filter False-Negative results from the LLM usage).

KPANIC indicates that a reliable kernel crash, kernel panic, or similarly
serious kernel availability impact was identified by the classification
workflow.

AL-KERNEL base severity for this report: MODERATE
KPANIC detected for this report: NO
Published priority for this report (same as in Subject): MODERATE REGULAR

These results are intended to support engineering triage. They are
machine-generated estimates, and cases marked for manual review should
be validated by a human security engineer before final disposition.
For more info read docs linked from here: https://kernelcve.org/
(and you can submit you own patch there to generate such a report
for non-existant CVE-id yet).

Note that in many cases this AI tool selects higher severity, than
real is (means you can expect Importants instead of Moderate 7.0 or
Moderates 7.0 instead of regular Moderates). If you see such cases,
please use reply email interface to add additional manual analyses
info to this particular CVE.
And please, please, let me know when you see Lows instead of Importants
or Important instead of Low (because particular for such cases I
need to tune this AI tool to make it better for this one and next similar).
My contact email for such notifications is alexanjelausa@gmail.com (and both
send reply to CVE record itself too and see "reply" button below for howto reply).