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Vulnerability DatabaseCVE-2022-50546
CVE-2022-50546:
Linux Kernel vulnerability analysis and mitigation
Overview
A vulnerability in the Linux kernel's ext4 filesystem implementation was identified as CVE-2022-50546. The issue involves an uninitialized value in the 'ext4evictinode' function, which was discovered by Syzbot. The vulnerability was published on October 7, 2025 (NVD).
Technical details
The vulnerability occurs when 'ext4allocinode()' fails to initialize 'ei->iflags'. If a new inode creation fails before setting 'ei->iflags' in '_ext4newinode()', and then 'iput()' is called, it leads to accessing an uninitialized value in 'ext4evict_inode()'. This issue was introduced after commit 6bc0d63dad7f. The vulnerability affects the ext4 filesystem code in the Linux kernel, specifically in the fs/ext4/inode.c file at line 180 (NVD).
Impact
The vulnerability has been assessed with a CVSS v3.1 Base Score of 5.5, indicating a moderate severity level. The attack requires local access and low privileges to exploit (Red Hat).
Mitigation and workarounds
The fix involves initializing 'ei->iflags' in 'ext4alloc_inode()' to prevent the access to uninitialized values. This solution has been implemented in the Linux kernel (NVD).
Additional resources
Source: This report was generated using AI
Related Linux Kernel vulnerabilities:
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