# CVE-2010-4258: Privilege escalation in n/a

> Local attackers can exploit improper KERNEL_DS handling in the Linux kernel to overwrite memory and gain elevated privileges.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.2 (`AV:L/AC:H/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 30 Dec 2010
- **Updated:** 7 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-vj6j-hh8w-8qxh

## What is CVE-2010-4258?

CVE-2010-4258 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Fedoraproject Fedora, published on 30 Dec 2010. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

The do_exit function in kernel/exit.c in the Linux kernel before 2.6.36.2 does not properly handle a KERNEL_DS get_fs value, which allows local users to bypass intended access_ok restrictions, overwrite arbitrary kernel memory locations, and gain privileges by leveraging a (1) BUG, (2) NULL pointer dereference, or (3) page fault, as demonstrated by vectors involving the clear_child_tid feature and the splice system call.

Weakness: CWE-269 (Improper Privilege Management)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2010-4258?

It affects 7 products.


Products: Fedoraproject Fedora, Linux kernel, Opensuse Opensuse, Suse Linux Enterprise Desktop, Suse Linux Enterprise Real Time Extension, Suse Linux Enterprise Server, Suse Linux Enterprise Software Development Kit.

## How do I fix CVE-2010-4258?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2010-4258 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2010-4258 exists.

Public exploit code:

- Linux Kernel 2.6.37 (RedHat / Ubuntu 10.04) - 'Full-Nelson.c' Local Privilege Escalation (exploitdb)

## Other vulnerabilities in Fedoraproject Fedora

- [CVE-2024-4577](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4577/): PHP-CGI OS Command Injection (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2021-39226](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-39226/): Grafana Authentication Bypass (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2019-5544](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-5544/): VMware ESXi and Horizon DaaS OpenSLP Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2024-4947](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4947/): Google Chromium V8 Type Confusion (critical 9.6, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2024-4671](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4671/): Google Chromium Visuals Use-After-Free (critical 9.6, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2010-4258 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2010-4258 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Fedoraproject Fedora, published on 30 Dec 2010. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2010-4258 exists.

Affected product: Fedoraproject Fedora. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2010-4258/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2010-4258/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2010-4258
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2010-4258
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2010-4258

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2010-4258/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.