Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This is a Linux kernel availability flaw in a Texas Instruments system-control power-domain driver. If memory allocation fails, the driver may later dereference a null pointer, causing a crash. The CVSS impact is availability only, with local access required and no evidence of active exploitation in the supplied sources.
Executive priority
Treat as a routine but real availability patching item. It is not described as remotely exploitable or actively exploited, but kernel crashes can affect uptime on exposed embedded or appliance fleets using relevant TI platform support.
Technical view
CVE-2022-49453 is a CWE-476 null-pointer dereference in soc: ti: ti_sci_pm_domains. devm_kcalloc can return NULL, and missing error handling could lead to a later dereference. The upstream fix checks allocation failure and returns -ENOMEM. CVSS 3.1 is 5.5: local, low complexity, low privileges, no user interaction, availability high.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on Linux systems running affected kernel builds with the TI SCI power-domain driver present or enabled. The supplied data names Linux as affected and provides upstream stable fix references, but does not provide distro package mappings or CPEs.
Exploitation context
The supplied sources do not show public exploitation or CISA KEV listing. The CVSS vector requires local access with low privileges and targets availability, suggesting crash or denial-of-service risk rather than data theft or privilege escalation based on available evidence.
Researcher notes
Evidence is limited to the CVE record and upstream kernel stable commits. The root cause is missing NULL handling after devm_kcalloc. Avoid assuming affected distributions, exploitability beyond local DoS, or broader impact without vendor-specific confirmation.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade to a kernel containing the referenced upstream stable fix.
- Check your Linux distribution advisory for backported fixes.
- Prioritize systems using TI SoCs or TI SCI power-domain support.
- Track vendor kernel package status before production rollout.
- Apply normal reboot planning for kernel updates.
Validation and detection
- Inventory kernels and compare against vendor-fixed versions.
- Confirm whether TI SCI PM domain support is built or loaded.
- Review distribution CVE advisories for CVE-2022-49453 status.
- Validate patched kernels include the null-check fix.
- Run regression testing on affected embedded or TI-based platforms.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
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
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-476: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2022-49453 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Medium
- CVSS
- 5.5 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
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.
SSVC decision data
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H1.83.6CISA-ADPVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
5.5MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Vulnerability timeline
Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.
- CVE reservedCVE Program
The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.
- CVE publishedCVE Program
The CVE record was published.
- CVE updatedCVE Program
The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.
ADP provider summaries
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/05efc4591f80582b6fe53366b70b6a35a42fd255CVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7cef9274fa1b8506949d74bc45aef072b890824aCVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c4e188869406b47ac3350920bf165be303cb1c96CVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/01ba41a359622ab256ce4d4f8b94c67165ae3dafCVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ba56291e297d28aa6eb82c5c1964fae2d7594746CVE reference, Linux
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
NULL Pointer Dereference
NULL Pointer Dereference represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.