# CVE-2022-49067: powerpc: Fix virt_addr_valid() for 64-bit Book3E & 32-bit

> A flaw in the Linux kernel's powerpc architecture allows incorrect virtual address validation, leading to kernel panics and denial of service.

- **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:** 26 Feb 2025
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2022-49067, GHSA-3vm4-73fj-2j43, UBUNTU-CVE-2022-49067

## What is CVE-2022-49067?

CVE-2022-49067 is a medium-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 26 Feb 2025. 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:

powerpc: Fix virt_addr_valid() for 64-bit Book3E & 32-bit

mpe: On 64-bit Book3E vmalloc space starts at 0x8000000000000000.

Because of the way __pa() works we have:
  __pa(0x8000000000000000) == 0, and therefore
  virt_to_pfn(0x8000000000000000) == 0, and therefore
  virt_addr_valid(0x8000000000000000) == true

Which is wrong, virt_addr_valid() should be false for vmalloc space.
In fact all vmalloc addresses that alias with a valid PFN will return
true from virt_addr_valid(). That can cause bugs with hardened usercopy
as described below by Kefeng Wang:

  When running ethtool eth0 on 64-bit Book3E, a BUG occurred:

    usercopy: Kernel memory exposure attempt detected from SLUB object not in SLUB page?! (offset 0, size 1048)!
    kernel BUG at mm/usercopy.c:99
    ...
    usercopy_abort+0x64/0xa0 (unreliable)
    __check_heap_object+0x168/0x190
    __check_object_size+0x1a0/0x200
    dev_ethtool+0x2494/0x2b20
    dev_ioctl+0x5d0/0x770
    sock_do_ioctl+0xf0/0x1d0
    sock_ioctl+0x3ec/0x5a0
    __se_sys_ioctl+0xf0/0x160
    system_call_exception+0xfc/0x1f0
    system_call_common+0xf8/0x200

  The code shows below,

    data = vzalloc(array_size(gstrings.len, ETH_GSTRING_LEN));
    copy_to_user(useraddr, data, gstrings.len * ETH_GSTRING_LEN))

  The data is alloced by vmalloc(), virt_addr_valid(ptr) will return true
  on 64-bit Book3E, which leads to the panic.

  As commit 4dd7554a6456 ("powerpc/64: Add VIRTUAL_BUG_ON checks for __va
  and __pa addresses") does, make sure the virt addr above PAGE_OFFSET in
  the virt_addr_valid() for 64-bit, also add upper limit check to make
  sure the virt is below high_memory.

  Meanwhile, for 32-bit PAGE_OFFSET is the virtual address of the start
  of lowmem, high_memory is the upper low virtual address, the check is
  suitable for 32-bit, this will fix the issue mentioned in commit
  602946ec2f90 ("powerpc: Set max_mapnr correctly") too.

On 32-bit there is a similar problem with high memory, that was fixed in
commit 602946ec2f90 ("powerpc: Set max_mapnr correctly"), but that
commit breaks highmem and needs to be reverted.

We can't easily fix __pa(), we have code that relies on its current
behaviour. So for now add extra checks to virt_addr_valid().

For 64-bit Book3S the extra checks are not necessary, the combination of
virt_to_pfn() and pfn_valid() should yield the correct result, but they
are harmless.

[mpe: Add additional change log detail]

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2022-49067?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2022-49067?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2022-49067 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-49067 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-2022-49067 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2022-49067 is a medium-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 26 Feb 2025. 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-2022-49067 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-2022-49067/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-49067/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-49067
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-49067
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2022-49067

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-49067/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.