# CVE-2012-5375: Denial of service in n/a

> Local attackers can cause denial of service in Linux kernel Btrfs by creating files with crafted names, preventing file creation in targeted directories.

- **Severity:** Medium 4.0 (`AV:L/AC:H/Au:N/C:N/I:N/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:** 18 Feb 2013
- **Updated:** 6 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2012-5375, GHSA-857w-w5qw-hx3x

## What is CVE-2012-5375?

CVE-2012-5375 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 18 Feb 2013. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

The CRC32C feature in the Btrfs implementation in the Linux kernel before 3.8-rc1 allows local users to cause a denial of service (prevention of file creation) by leveraging the ability to write to a directory important to the victim, and creating a file with a crafted name that is associated with a specific CRC32C hash value.

Weakness: CWE-310

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2012-5375?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2012-5375?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2012-5375 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2012-5375 exists.

Public exploit code:

- Linux Kernel 3.3.5 - Btrfs CRC32C feature Infinite Loop Local Denial of Service (exploitdb)

## Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

- [CVE-2026-53266](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53266/): Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-6282](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6282/): Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-0185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0185/): Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-2094](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2094/): Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-53362](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53362/): Linux Kernel Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2012-5375 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2012-5375 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 18 Feb 2013. 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-2012-5375 exists.

Affected product: Linux kernel. 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-2012-5375/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2012-5375/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2012-5375
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2012-5375
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2012-5375

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2012-5375/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.