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CVE Record

CVE-2024-44949: parisc: fix a possible DMA corruption

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: parisc: fix a possible DMA corruption ARCH_DMA_MINALIGN was defined as 16 - this is too small - it may be possible that two unrelated 16-byte allocations share a cache line. If one of these allocations is written using DMA and the other is written using cached write, the value that was written with DMA may be corrupted. This commit changes ARCH_DMA_MINALIGN to be 128 on PA20 and 32 on PA1.1 - that's the largest possible cache line size. As different parisc microarchitectures have different cache line size, we define arch_slab_minalign(), cache_line_size() and dma_get_cache_alignment() so that the kernel may tune slab cache parameters dynamically, based on the detected cache line size.

HighCVSS 7.8Not KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysishigh

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

A Linux kernel memory-alignment flaw on PA-RISC systems can let normal processor writes corrupt data written by DMA when separate allocations share a cache line. Corruption could affect confidentiality, integrity, or availability, but the supplied evidence limits the issue to PA-RISC and does not show active exploitation.

Executive priority

Treat confirmed affected PA-RISC systems as a high, targeted remediation priority because silent memory corruption can undermine system trust. Estate-wide urgency is lower where PA-RISC is absent. Request architecture inventory and vendor-confirmed patch status rather than assuming all Linux systems are exposed.

Technical view

On parisc, ARCH_DMA_MINALIGN was 16 bytes, below possible cache-line sizes. Unrelated allocations could therefore share a line, allowing cached writes to overwrite DMA-written data. The fix sets alignment to 128 bytes on PA20 and 32 bytes on PA1.1, with runtime cache-alignment helpers.

Likely exposure

Exposure appears limited to Linux systems using PA-RISC hardware and affected kernel code. Other architectures are not identified. The supplied affected-version data contains ambiguous entries and commit hashes, so organizations should confirm applicability using kernel provenance and vendor advisories.

Exploitation context

CVSS 3.1 scores this 7.8, requiring local access and low privileges without user interaction. CISA KEV status is false, and the supplied sources provide no evidence of active exploitation or a public exploit. Practical exploitation conditions are not established.

Researcher notes

The failure involves cache-line aliasing between unrelated allocations and DMA coherency, not a described remote entry point. Exact vulnerable and fixed release boundaries cannot be resolved confidently from the supplied version list. Validate through architecture-specific source history and vendor backport records; avoid inferring exploitability from CVSS alone.

Mitigation direction

  • Upgrade to a vendor-supported kernel containing the applicable referenced stable fix.
  • Confirm distribution remediation guidance before selecting a target kernel release.
  • Prioritize PA-RISC systems performing DMA or processing sensitive workloads.
  • If upgrading is delayed, consult the vendor; no standalone workaround is specified.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory Linux hosts and identify any using the PA-RISC architecture.
  • Record kernel versions, distribution packages, and source commit provenance.
  • Check whether the applicable referenced stable commit is incorporated.
  • Verify the running kernel after remediation, including following any required reboot.
Prepared
Confidence
medium
Sources
7

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-2024-44949 mapping review

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
High
CVSS
7.8 (3.1)
Known Exploited
No
Published

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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.

1CVSS vectors
3Timeline events
2ADP providers
6Source links

SSVC decision data

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

CVSS vector scores

1 official score

We 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.

ScoreVersionSeverityVectorExploitImpactSource
7.8CVSS 3.1HighCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H1.85.9Linux

Vulnerability scoring details

Base CVSS 3.1 score

7.8High
CVSS 3.1 vector shape for CVE-2024-44949Attack VectorAttack ComplexityPrivileges RequiredUser InteractionScopeConfidentiality ImpactIntegrity ImpactAvailability Impact

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Attack Vector
NetworkAdjacentLocalPhysical
Attack Complexity
LowHigh
Privileges Required
NoneLowHigh
User Interaction
NoneRequired
Scope
ChangedUnchanged
Confidentiality Impact
HighLowNone
Integrity Impact
HighLowNone
Availability Impact
HighLowNone

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

Source materials

Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
LinuxLinuxa01fece2e4185ac173abd16d10304d73d47ebf00, a01fece2e4185ac173abd16d10304d73d47ebf00, a01fece2e4185ac173abd16d10304d73d47ebf00, a01fece2e4185ac173abd16d10304d73d47ebf00unaffected
LinuxLinux4.4, 0, 6.1.119, 6.6.46, 6.10.5, 6.11affected
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

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