# CVE-2018-10872: Denial of service in kernel

> An unprivileged user can crash the Linux kernel via a stack switch exception handling flaw, causing a denial of service.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.5 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **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:** 10 Jul 2018
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-652g-78m6-29wq

## What is CVE-2018-10872?

CVE-2018-10872 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Redhat Enterprise Linux, published on 10 Jul 2018. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

A flaw was found in the way the Linux kernel handled exceptions delivered after a stack switch operation via Mov SS or Pop SS instructions. During the stack switch operation, processor does not deliver interrupts and exceptions, they are delivered once the first instruction after the stack switch is executed. An unprivileged system user could use this flaw to crash the system kernel resulting in DoS. This CVE-2018-10872 was assigned due to regression of CVE-2018-8897 in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.10 GA kernel. No other versions are affected by this CVE.

Weakness: CWE-119 (Improper Restriction of Operations within the Bounds of a Memory Buffer), CWE-250 (Execution with Unnecessary Privileges)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2018-10872?

It affects 4 products.


Products: Redhat Enterprise Linux, Redhat Enterprise Linux Desktop, Redhat Enterprise Linux Server, Redhat Enterprise Linux Workstation.

## How do I fix CVE-2018-10872?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2018-10872 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-10872 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Redhat Enterprise Linux

- [CVE-2018-14667](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-14667/): Red Hat JBoss RichFaces Framework Expression Language Injection (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2021-20325](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-20325/): Missing fixes for CVE-2021-40438 and CVE-2021-26691 in the versions of httpd, as shipped in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.5.0, causes a securit (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2018-25011](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-25011/): Memory corruption in libwebp (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2018-25014](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-25014/): Other in libwebp (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2014-3585](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2014-3585/): Supply chain in redhat-upgrade-tool (critical 9.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2018-10872 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2018-10872 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Redhat Enterprise Linux, published on 10 Jul 2018. 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-2018-10872 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Redhat Enterprise 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-2018-10872/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-10872/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2018-10872
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-10872
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2018-10872

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-10872/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.