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CVE Record

CVE-2024-43870: perf: Fix event leak upon exit

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: perf: Fix event leak upon exit When a task is scheduled out, pending sigtrap deliveries are deferred to the target task upon resume to userspace via task_work. However failures while adding an event's callback to the task_work engine are ignored. And since the last call for events exit happen after task work is eventually closed, there is a small window during which pending sigtrap can be queued though ignored, leaking the event refcount addition such as in the following scenario: TASK A ----- do_exit() exit_task_work(tsk); <IRQ> perf_event_overflow() event->pending_sigtrap = pending_id; irq_work_queue(&event->pending_irq); </IRQ> =========> PREEMPTION: TASK A -> TASK B event_sched_out() event->pending_sigtrap = 0; atomic_long_inc_not_zero(&event->refcount) // FAILS: task work has exited task_work_add(&event->pending_task) [...] <IRQ WORK> perf_pending_irq() // early return: event->oncpu = -1 </IRQ WORK> [...] =========> TASK B -> TASK A perf_event_exit_task(tsk) perf_event_exit_event() free_event() WARN(atomic_long_cmpxchg(&event->refcount, 1, 0) != 1) // leak event due to unexpected refcount == 2 As a result the event is never released while the task exits. Fix this with appropriate task_work_add()'s error handling.

UnknownCVSS not scoredNot KEV-listedUpdated
Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

CVE-2024-43870 is a Linux kernel perf bug where a task exit race can leave a performance event reference unreleased. The described impact is a resource leak during process exit, not confirmed remote code execution or privilege escalation. Treat it as kernel maintenance risk unless your environment depends heavily on affected Linux kernels.

Executive priority

Handle through normal kernel patch management, with higher priority for exposed production fleets and multi-tenant Linux hosts. Current evidence supports operational risk from resource leakage, not emergency response for active exploitation.

Technical view

The perf subsystem may ignore task_work_add() failure after task work has closed during task exit. A pending sigtrap path can increment an event refcount, fail to queue cleanup, then leave free_event() seeing an unexpected refcount. The fix adds task_work_add() error handling.

Likely exposure

Exposure is Linux systems running affected kernel versions or distro backports identified by vendors. The source bundle lists upstream Linux as affected for several 5.15, 6.1, 6.6, 6.10, and 6.11-related versions, but package-level status must be confirmed by each distributor.

Exploitation context

The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing, public exploitation, exploit code, or a CVSS score. The described scenario requires a narrow kernel race involving perf event overflow, pending sigtrap handling, task scheduling, and task exit.

Researcher notes

Evidence is limited to the kernel CVE description, stable commit references, and a Debian LTS advisory link. The root issue is missed error handling in perf task_work cleanup during a task exit race. No source names affected distributions beyond Debian LTS context.

Mitigation direction

  • Apply vendor kernel updates that include the referenced stable fixes.
  • Check distributor advisories before relying on upstream version numbers.
  • Review the Debian LTS announcement if running Debian LTS.
  • Prioritize shared or long-running Linux hosts where kernel leaks are operationally costly.
  • Track exceptions until an updated kernel package is installed.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory running kernel versions across Linux hosts.
  • Compare package status with vendor advisories for CVE-2024-43870.
  • Verify kernel changelogs include this CVE or referenced stable commits.
  • Confirm rebooted systems are running the updated kernel.
  • Document remaining affected hosts and planned update windows.
Prepared
Confidence
medium
Sources
8

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

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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
2ADP providers
7Source 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
CVECVE Program Container
Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
LinuxLinux8bffa95ac19ff27c8261904f89d36c7fcf215d59, 517e6a301f34613bff24a8e35b5455884f2d83d8, 517e6a301f34613bff24a8e35b5455884f2d83d8, 517e6a301f34613bff24a8e35b5455884f2d83d8, 517e6a301f34613bff24a8e35b5455884f2d83d8, 78e1317a174edbfd1182599bf76c092a2877672c, 5.15.84, 6.0.14unaffected
LinuxLinux6.1, 0, 5.15.165, 6.1.103, 6.6.44, 6.10.3, 6.11affected
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

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