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CVE Record

CVE-2022-48904: iommu/amd: Fix I/O page table memory leak

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: iommu/amd: Fix I/O page table memory leak The current logic updates the I/O page table mode for the domain before calling the logic to free memory used for the page table. This results in IOMMU page table memory leak, and can be observed when launching VM w/ pass-through devices. Fix by freeing the memory used for page table before updating the mode.

UnknownCVSS not scoredNot KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

CVE-2022-48904 is a Linux kernel AMD IOMMU memory leak. It can occur when virtual machines are launched with pass-through devices. Business impact is mainly resource exhaustion or host instability in affected virtualization environments, not confirmed data theft. No active exploitation is reported in the provided sources.

Executive priority

Prioritize patching for AMD-based virtualization hosts using device pass-through. Treat as lower urgency for standard servers without that configuration. Absence of known exploitation lowers emergency response need, but memory leaks can still affect availability.

Technical view

The AMD IOMMU code updated an I/O page table mode before freeing memory for the previous page table. This leaked IOMMU page table memory during VM launches using pass-through devices. The Linux stable tree references fixes that free page table memory before changing the mode.

Likely exposure

Exposure is most relevant to Linux hosts using AMD IOMMU with virtualization and PCI/device pass-through. General Linux systems without this configuration are less likely to encounter the issue. The affected-version data is limited, so confirm against distribution kernel advisories and included stable commits.

Exploitation context

The provided sources describe a memory leak observable during VM launch with pass-through devices. They do not document remote exploitation, privilege escalation, public exploit code, or CISA KEV listing. Practical abuse likely depends on access to create or manage such VMs.

Researcher notes

Public detail is limited to the kernel fix description and stable commit references. There is no CVSS, CWE, or KEV entry in the provided bundle. Validate impact by configuration: AMD IOMMU plus VM pass-through usage is the key exposure signal.

Mitigation direction

  • Update affected Linux kernels through your distribution or vendor channel.
  • Verify the kernel includes the referenced AMD IOMMU stable fixes.
  • Prioritize virtualization hosts using AMD IOMMU and device pass-through.
  • If patching is delayed, review vendor guidance for operational workarounds.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory Linux virtualization hosts with AMD IOMMU enabled.
  • Identify systems using VM device or PCI pass-through.
  • Compare running kernel versions against vendor advisories and fixed stable commits.
  • Monitor affected hosts for unexplained kernel memory growth during VM lifecycle events.
Prepared
Confidence
medium
Sources
5

Public sources used

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

Potential ATT&CK relevance

Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context

These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.

ATT&CK lookup starting points

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CVE-2022-48904 mapping review

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Unknown
CVSS
Not scored
Known Exploited
No
Published
Official CVE source material

CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5

These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.

0CVSS vectors
3Timeline events
1ADP providers
4Source links

SSVC decision data

CISA-ADPCISA Coordinator
Timestamp
Version
2.0.3
Exploitation: noneAutomatable: noTechnical Impact: partial

Vulnerability timeline

Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.

  1. CVE reservedCVE Program

    The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.

  2. CVE publishedCVE Program

    The CVE record was published.

  3. CVE updatedCVE Program

    The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.

ADP provider summaries

CISA-ADPCISA ADP Vulnrichment
other:ssvc

Source materials

Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
LinuxLinuxe42ba0633064ef23eb1c8c21edf96bac1541bd4b, e42ba0633064ef23eb1c8c21edf96bac1541bd4b, e42ba0633064ef23eb1c8c21edf96bac1541bd4bunaffected
LinuxLinux5.12, 0, 5.15.27, 5.16.13, 5.17affected
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.