# CVE-2024-38592: drm/mediatek: Init `ddp_comp` with devm_kcalloc()

> A missing initialization in the Mediatek DRM driver can cause a kernel crash when specific debug options are enabled, leading to denial of service.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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:** 19 Jun 2024
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2024-38592, DEBIAN-CVE-2024-38592, GHSA-9mq7-fm24-r296, UBUNTU-CVE-2024-38592

## What is CVE-2024-38592?

CVE-2024-38592 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 19 Jun 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:

drm/mediatek: Init `ddp_comp` with devm_kcalloc()

In the case where `conn_routes` is true we allocate an extra slot in
the `ddp_comp` array but mtk_drm_crtc_create() never seemed to
initialize it in the test case I ran. For me, this caused a later
crash when we looped through the array in mtk_drm_crtc_mode_valid().
This showed up for me when I booted with `slub_debug=FZPUA` which
poisons the memory initially. Without `slub_debug` I couldn't
reproduce, presumably because the later code handles the value being
NULL and in most cases (not guaranteed in all cases) the memory the
allocator returned started out as 0.

It really doesn't hurt to initialize the array with devm_kcalloc()
since the array is small and the overhead of initting a handful of
elements to 0 is small. In general initting memory to zero is a safer
practice and usually it's suggested to only use the non-initting alloc
functions if you really need to.

Let's switch the function to use an allocation function that zeros the
memory. For me, this avoids the crash.

Weakness: CWE-908 (Use of Uninitialized Resource)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2024-38592?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2024-38592?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2024-38592 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2024-38592 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-2024-38592 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2024-38592 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 19 Jun 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-2024-38592 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-2024-38592/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-38592/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2024-38592
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-38592
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2024-38592

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-38592/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.