CVE-2020-12888: Medium severity IBM Data Risk Manager vulnerability

Published May 14, 2020
·
Updated

A flaw was found in the Linux kernel, where it allows userspace processes, for example, a guest VM, to directly access h/w devices via its VFIO driver modules. The VFIO modules allow users to enable or disable access to the devices' MMIO memory address spaces. If a user attempts to access the read/write devices' MMIO address space when it is disabled, some h/w devices issue an interrupt to the CPU to indicate a fatal error condition, crashing the system. This flaw allows a guest user or process to crash the host system resulting in a denial of service.

Other sources

Linux kernel allows user space processes (like guest VM) to directly access h/w devices via its VFIO driver modules. The VFIO modules allow users to enable or disable access to the devices' MMIO memory address spaces. If a user attempts to access(r/w) devices' MMIO address space, when it is disabled, some h/w devices issue an interrupt to the CPU to indicate a fatal error condition, essentially crashing down the system. A guest user/process may use this flaw to crash the host system resulting in DoS scenario.

Upstream patches: ----------------- -> https://lore.kernel.org/kvm/158871570274.15589.10563806532874116326.stgit@gimli.home/ -> https://lore.kernel.org/kvm/158871401328.15589.17598154478222071285.stgit@gimli.home/

Reference: ---------- -> https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2020/05/19/6

— Red Hat

Linux Kernel is vulnerable to a denial of service, caused by improper handling of attempts to access disabled memory space by the VFIO PCI driver. By sending a specially-crafted request, a local attacker could exploit this vulnerability to cause a denial of service condition.

— IBM

The VFIO PCI driver in the Linux kernel through 5.6.13 mishandles attempts to access disabled memory space.

Affected Software

86 affected componentsFixes available
redhat/kernel-rt<0:3.10.0-1127.13.1.rt56.1110.el7
0:3.10.0-1127.13.1.rt56.1110.el7
redhat/kernel<0:3.10.0-1127.13.1.el7
0:3.10.0-1127.13.1.el7
redhat/kernel-alt<0:4.14.0-115.26.1.el7a
0:4.14.0-115.26.1.el7a
redhat/kernel<0:3.10.0-327.89.1.el7
0:3.10.0-327.89.1.el7
redhat/kernel<0:3.10.0-514.78.1.el7
0:3.10.0-514.78.1.el7
redhat/kernel<0:3.10.0-693.71.2.el7
0:3.10.0-693.71.2.el7
redhat/kernel<0:3.10.0-957.56.1.el7
0:3.10.0-957.56.1.el7
redhat/kernel<0:3.10.0-1062.30.1.el7
0:3.10.0-1062.30.1.el7
redhat/kernel-rt<0:4.18.0-193.13.2.rt13.65.el8_2
0:4.18.0-193.13.2.rt13.65.el8_2
redhat/kernel<0:4.18.0-193.13.2.el8_2
0:4.18.0-193.13.2.el8_2
redhat/kernel<0:4.18.0-80.27.1.el8_0
0:4.18.0-80.27.1.el8_0
redhat/kernel<0:4.18.0-147.24.2.el8_1
0:4.18.0-147.24.2.el8_1
IBM Data Risk Manager<=2.0.6
Linux Linux kernel<=5.6.13
Fedoraproject Fedora=31
Fedoraproject Fedora=32
openSUSE Leap=15.1
openSUSE Leap=15.2
Debian Debian Linux=9.0
Canonical Ubuntu Linux=14.04
Canonical Ubuntu Linux=16.04
Canonical Ubuntu Linux=18.04
Canonical Ubuntu Linux=20.04
NetApp Active Iq Unified Manager Vmware Vsphere
NetApp Cloud Backup
NetApp Element Software
NetApp Hci Management Node
NetApp Solidfire
NetApp Steelstore Cloud Integrated Storage
NetApp Solidfire Baseboard Management Controller Firmware
NetApp Solidfire Baseboard Management Controller
NetApp Bootstrap Os
NetApp Hci Compute Node
NetApp A700s Firmware
NetApp A700s
NetApp H300s Firmware
NetApp H300s
NetApp H500s Firmware
NetApp H500s
NetApp H700s Firmware
NetApp H700s
NetApp H300e Firmware
NetApp H300e
NetApp H500e Firmware
NetApp H500e
NetApp H700e Firmware
NetApp H700e
NetApp H410s Firmware
NetApp H410s
NetApp H410c Firmware
NetApp H410c
NetApp H610c Firmware
NetApp H610c
NetApp H610s Firmware
NetApp H610s
NetApp H615c Firmware
NetApp H615c
All of the following
NetApp Solidfire Baseboard Management Controller Firmware
NetApp Solidfire Baseboard Management Controller
All of the following
NetApp Bootstrap Os
NetApp Hci Compute Node
All of the following
NetApp A700s Firmware
NetApp A700s
All of the following
NetApp H300s Firmware
NetApp H300s
All of the following
NetApp H500s Firmware
NetApp H500s
All of the following
NetApp H700s Firmware
NetApp H700s
All of the following
NetApp H300e Firmware
NetApp H300e
All of the following
NetApp H500e Firmware
NetApp H500e
All of the following
NetApp H700e Firmware
NetApp H700e
All of the following
NetApp H410s Firmware
NetApp H410s
All of the following
NetApp H410c Firmware
NetApp H410c
All of the following
NetApp H610c Firmware
NetApp H610c
All of the following
NetApp H610s Firmware
NetApp H610s
All of the following
NetApp H615c Firmware
NetApp H615c
debian/linux
5.10.223-15.10.259-16.1.176-16.1.177-16.12.94-16.12.96-17.1.3-17.1.4-1

Remediation

Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.

  1. Upgrade

    Upgrade redhat/kernel-rt to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 0:3.10.0-1127.13.1.rt56.1110.el7
  2. Upgrade

    Upgrade redhat/kernel to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 0:3.10.0-1127.13.1.el7
  3. Upgrade

    Upgrade redhat/kernel-alt to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 0:4.14.0-115.26.1.el7a
  4. Upgrade

    Upgrade redhat/kernel to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 0:3.10.0-327.89.1.el7
  5. Upgrade

    Upgrade redhat/kernel to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 0:3.10.0-514.78.1.el7
  6. Upgrade

    Upgrade redhat/kernel to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 0:3.10.0-693.71.2.el7
  7. Upgrade

    Upgrade redhat/kernel to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 0:3.10.0-957.56.1.el7
  8. Upgrade

    Upgrade redhat/kernel to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 0:3.10.0-1062.30.1.el7
  9. Upgrade

    Upgrade redhat/kernel-rt to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 0:4.18.0-193.13.2.rt13.65.el8_2
  10. Upgrade

    Upgrade redhat/kernel to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 0:4.18.0-193.13.2.el8_2
  11. Upgrade

    Upgrade redhat/kernel to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 0:4.18.0-80.27.1.el8_0
  12. Upgrade

    Upgrade redhat/kernel to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 0:4.18.0-147.24.2.el8_1
  13. Upgrade

    Upgrade debian/linux to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 5.10.223-1Fixed in 5.10.259-1Fixed in 6.1.176-1Fixed in 6.1.177-1Fixed in 6.12.94-1Fixed in 6.12.96-1Fixed in 7.1.3-1Fixed in 7.1.4-1

Event History

May 14, 2020
CVE Published
12:00 AM
May 15, 2020
Data Sourced
via Red Hat·01:13 PM
DescriptionSeverityAffected Software
CVE Published
via MITRE·05:02 PM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·05:02 PM
Description
Data Sourced
via NVD·06:15 PM
DescriptionSeverityWeaknessAffected Software
Sep 27, 2025
Data Sourced
via Launchpad·02:39 AM
Description
Jul 5, 2026
Data Sourced
via Ubuntu·03:28 PM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityAffected Software
Jul 21, 2026
Data Sourced
via Debian·03:48 PM
DescriptionAffected Software

Parent advisories

This vulnerability appears in the following advisories.

Free Weekly Intel

Don't miss critical vulnerabilities

Join thousands of security professionals who receive our weekly digest of trending CVEs, zero-days, and exploited vulnerabilities.

No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.

Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is the severity of CVE-2020-12888?

CVE-2020-12888 is categorized as a high-severity vulnerability affecting the Linux kernel.

2

How do I fix CVE-2020-12888?

To fix CVE-2020-12888, update your Linux kernel to the patched version provided by your distribution.

3

What products are affected by CVE-2020-12888?

CVE-2020-12888 affects multiple distributions of the Linux kernel, including specific versions from RedHat, Debian, Ubuntu, and Fedora.

4

What types of attacks can exploit CVE-2020-12888?

CVE-2020-12888 can be exploited by malicious userspace processes to gain unauthorized access to hardware devices.

5

When was CVE-2020-12888 disclosed?

CVE-2020-12888 was disclosed in July 2020.

Company

Resources

Contact

SecAlerts Pty Ltd.
132 Wickham Terrace
Fortitude Valley,
QLD 4006, Australia
info@secalerts.co
By using SecAlerts services, you agree to our services end-user license agreement. This website is safeguarded by reCAPTCHA and governed by the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. All names, logos, and brands of products are owned by their respective owners, and any usage of these names, logos, and brands for identification purposes only does not imply endorsement. If you possess any content that requires removal, please get in touch with us.
© 2026 SecAlerts Pty Ltd.
ABN: 70 645 966 203, ACN: 645 966 203