Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This Linux kernel issue can let a local, authenticated user or process trigger a kernel crash condition in the traffic-control scheduler path. The documented impact is availability only: no confidentiality or integrity impact is claimed. It matters most for shared Linux systems where local users, containers, or services can reach the relevant networking configuration path.
Executive priority
Treat this as a routine but real availability risk. It is not described as remote code execution or data theft, but a local crash path can still affect uptime on shared Linux infrastructure. Patch through normal kernel maintenance, prioritizing exposed multi-user or container hosts.
Technical view
CVE-2022-50356 is a NULL pointer dereference in the Linux kernel sfb qdisc cleanup path. If sfb_init() fails during mqprio_init(), q->qdisc can remain NULL, and sfb_reset() later calls qdisc_reset(q->qdisc), causing a general protection fault. CVSS 3.1 is 5.5, local attack vector, low complexity, low privileges, and high availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to affected Linux kernels and local access paths. Risk is higher on multi-user hosts or environments where less-trusted local workloads can interact with traffic-control qdisc configuration. Network-only exposure is not indicated by the provided sources.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not report active exploitation, and KEV is false. The described trigger is local and depends on a failure path involving default sfb qdisc creation during mqprio initialization. No public exploit steps are provided in the sources.
Researcher notes
The evidence supports CWE-476 and availability impact from NULL qdisc handling after sfb_init() failure. Version data in the bundle is incomplete without vendor package mapping, so confirm affected ranges through Linux stable commits and distribution advisories before declaring systems remediated.
Mitigation direction
- Update to a kernel containing the referenced stable fixes or vendor backports.
- Check Linux distribution advisories for the exact fixed package for your release.
- Prioritize shared hosts, container platforms, and systems with untrusted local users.
- Restrict unnecessary local access to networking traffic-control configuration paths.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Linux kernel versions across affected systems.
- Confirm whether the referenced stable commits or vendor backports are present.
- Review kernel logs for related general protection faults in sfb_reset or qdisc_reset.
- Map which hosts allow untrusted local users or workloads.
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-2022-50356 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/ded86c4191a3c17f8200d17a7d8a6f63b74554aeCVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c2e1e59d59fafe297779ceae1fe0e6fbebc3e745CVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/723399af2795fb95687a531c9480464b5f489333CVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2a3fc78210b9f0e85372a2435368962009f480fcCVE 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.