# CVE-2015-8551: Null dereference in n/a

> Local guest administrators can crash the host OS via NULL pointer dereference in the Xen PCI backend driver when using specific Linux kernels and passed-through devices.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.0 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 13 Apr 2016
- **Updated:** 6 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2015-8551, GHSA-xrr8-pr2x-q64f, UBUNTU-CVE-2015-8551

## What is CVE-2015-8551?

CVE-2015-8551 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 13 Apr 2016. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

The PCI backend driver in Xen, when running on an x86 system and using Linux 3.1.x through 4.3.x as the driver domain, allows local guest administrators to hit BUG conditions and cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference and host OS crash) by leveraging a system with access to a passed-through MSI or MSI-X capable physical PCI device and a crafted sequence of XEN_PCI_OP_* operations, aka "Linux pciback missing sanity checks."

Weakness: CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2015-8551?

It affects 8 products.


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

## How do I fix CVE-2015-8551?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2015-8551 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2015-8551 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Debian Debian Linux

- [CVE-2015-3306](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-3306/): ProFTPD Improper Access Control (critical 10.0, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-49113](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-49113/): RoundCube Webmail Deserialization of Untrusted Data (critical 9.9, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-24061](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-24061/): GNU InetUtils Argument Injection (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-39682](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-39682/): Linux Kernel Improper Check for Unusual or Exceptional Conditions (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2024-9680](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-9680/): Mozilla Firefox Use-After-Free (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2015-8551 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2015-8551 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 13 Apr 2016. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2015-8551 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Debian Debian Linux. 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-2015-8551/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-8551/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2015-8551
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2015-8551
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2015-8551

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-8551/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.