CVE-2013-2094 — Red Hat
Fix: torvalds/linux@8176cceCVE-2013-2094 is a security vulnerability. 13 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. No vendor fix is recorded yet; mitigation options are listed below.
Exploitation Status
Actively exploited in the wild
- CISA’s SSVC triage classifies this CVE as under active exploitation.
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2013-2094.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
Description
The perf_swevent_init function in kernel/events/core.c in the Linux kernel before 3.8.9 uses an incorrect integer data type, which allows local users to gain privileges via a crafted perf_event_open system call.
Research use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Linux Kernel < 3.8.9 (x86-64) - 'perf_swevent_init' Local Privilege Escalation (2)
by Andrea Bittau · Jun 11, 2013
Linux Kernel 3.2.0-23/3.5.0-23 (Ubuntu 12.04/12.04.1/12.04.2 x64) - 'perf_swevent_init' Local Privilege Escalation (3)
by Vitaly Nikolenko · May 31, 2014
Linux Kernel 2.6.32 < 3.x (CentOS 5/6) - 'PERF_EVENTS' Local Privilege Escalation (1)
by sd · May 14, 2013
Detection & mitigation playbook
VulnerabilityDetect
Identify every host running the affected component and compare the installed build against the fixed version below — for source-built or distro-packaged software the version string, not a lockfile, is the source of truth (`dpkg -l`, `rpm -q`, or the binary's own `--version`).
Remediation status
No fixed release is recorded for CVE-2013-2094 yet. Track the upstream advisory, and apply the exposure-reduction steps below in the meantime.
Mitigate without a patch
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
Fixing This On Your OS
If you run this on a Linux distribution, patch through your package manager against the distro's own security advisory below — it tracks the exact backported fix for your release, which can ship on a different timeline (and sometimes a different severity) than the upstream project.
This issue does not affect the kernel packages as shipped with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 because we did not backport upstream commit b0a873eb that introduced this issue. This issue was addressed in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 via RHSA-2013:0830 (https://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2013-0830.html), Red Hat Enterprise…
| Product | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | kernel-0:2.6.32-358.6.2.el6 | RHSA-2013:0830 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.1 EUS - Server Only | kernel-0:2.6.32-131.39.1.el6 | RHSA-2013:0841 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.2 EUS - Server and Compute Node Only | kernel-0:2.6.32-220.34.2.el6 | RHSA-2013:0840 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.3 EUS - Server and Compute Node Only | kernel-0:2.6.32-279.25.2.el6 | RHSA-2013:0832 |
| Red Hat Enterprise MRG 2 | kernel-rt-0:3.6.11.2-rt33.39.el6rt | RHSA-2013:0829 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2013-2094 in your dependencies?
Find it across , including transitive dependencies.