# CVE-2022-48832: audit: don't deref the syscall args when checking the openat2 open_how::flags

> A null pointer dereference in the Linux kernel audit subsystem can cause a system crash when processing openat2 syscalls.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/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:** 16 Jul 2024
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2022-48832, GHSA-cmrj-7qg8-pwx8, UBUNTU-CVE-2022-48832

## What is CVE-2022-48832?

CVE-2022-48832 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 16 Jul 2024. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

audit: don't deref the syscall args when checking the openat2 open_how::flags

As reported by Jeff, dereferencing the openat2 syscall argument in
audit_match_perm() to obtain the open_how::flags can result in an
oops/page-fault.  This patch fixes this by using the open_how struct
that we store in the audit_context with audit_openat2_how().

Independent of this patch, Richard Guy Briggs posted a similar patch
to the audit mailing list roughly 40 minutes after this patch was
posted.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2022-48832?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2022-48832?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2022-48832 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-48832 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-2022-48832 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2022-48832 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 16 Jul 2024. 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-2022-48832 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-2022-48832/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-48832/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-48832
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-48832
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2022-48832

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-48832/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.