# CVE-2020-28588: Information disclosure in Linux Kernel

> An attacker can read /proc/pid/syscall to leak kernel memory contents, exposing sensitive information.

- **Severity:** Medium 4.0 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 10 May 2021
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2020-28588, GHSA-xxv6-ggg8-68mq, UBUNTU-CVE-2020-28588

## What is CVE-2020-28588?

CVE-2020-28588 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 10 May 2021. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

An information disclosure vulnerability exists in the /proc/pid/syscall functionality of Linux Kernel 5.1 Stable and 5.4.66. More specifically, this issue has been introduced in v5.1-rc4 (commit 631b7abacd02b88f4b0795c08b54ad4fc3e7c7c0) and is still present in v5.10-rc4, so it’s likely that all versions in between are affected. An attacker can read /proc/pid/syscall to trigger this vulnerability, which leads to the kernel leaking memory contents.

Weakness: CWE-681 (Incorrect Conversion between Numeric Types)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-28588?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-28588?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2020-28588 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-28588 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## 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-2020-28588 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-28588 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 10 May 2021. 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-2020-28588 in the wild and no public exploit code.

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-2020-28588/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-28588/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-28588
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-28588
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-28588

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-28588/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.