CVE-2024-56541: wifi: ath12k: fix use-after-free in ath12k_dp_cc_cleanup()

Vulnerability summary

CVE-2024-56541 is a high (CVSS 7.8) Use After Free vulnerability in linux. EPSS estimates a 0.22% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 12.5% of scored vulnerabilities.

Timeline

1. 27-12-2024
   PublishedVulnerability first disclosed.
2. 11-05-2026
   Last modifiedVulnerability information updated.

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: ath12k: fix use-after-free in ath12k_dp_cc_cleanup() During ath12k module removal, in ath12k_core_deinit(), ath12k_mac_destroy() un-registers ah->hw from mac80211 and frees the ah->hw as well as all the ar's in it. After this ath12k_core_soc_destroy()-> ath12k_dp_free()-> ath12k_dp_cc_cleanup() tries to access one of the freed ar's from pending skb. This is because during mac destroy, driver failed to flush few data packets, which were accessed later in ath12k_dp_cc_cleanup() and freed, but using ar from the packet led to this use-after-free. BUG: KASAN: use-after-free in ath12k_dp_cc_cleanup.part.0+0x5e2/0xd40 [ath12k] Write of size 4 at addr ffff888150bd3514 by task modprobe/8926 CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 8926 Comm: modprobe Not tainted 6.11.0-rc2-wt-ath+ #1746 Hardware name: Intel(R) Client Systems NUC8i7HVK/NUC8i7HVB, BIOS HNKBLi70.86A.0067.2021.0528.1339 05/28/2021 Call Trace: <TASK> dump_stack_lvl+0x7d/0xe0 print_address_description.constprop.0+0x33/0x3a0 print_report+0xb5/0x260 ? kasan_addr_to_slab+0x24/0x80 kasan_report+0xd8/0x110 ? ath12k_dp_cc_cleanup.part.0+0x5e2/0xd40 [ath12k] ? ath12k_dp_cc_cleanup.part.0+0x5e2/0xd40 [ath12k] kasan_check_range+0xf3/0x1a0 __kasan_check_write+0x14/0x20 ath12k_dp_cc_cleanup.part.0+0x5e2/0xd40 [ath12k] ath12k_dp_free+0x178/0x420 [ath12k] ath12k_core_stop+0x176/0x200 [ath12k] ath12k_core_deinit+0x13f/0x210 [ath12k] ath12k_pci_remove+0xad/0x1c0 [ath12k] pci_device_remove+0x9b/0x1b0 device_remove+0xbf/0x150 device_release_driver_internal+0x3c3/0x580 ? __kasan_check_read+0x11/0x20 driver_detach+0xc4/0x190 bus_remove_driver+0x130/0x2a0 driver_unregister+0x68/0x90 pci_unregister_driver+0x24/0x240 ? find_module_all+0x13e/0x1e0 ath12k_pci_exit+0x10/0x20 [ath12k] __do_sys_delete_module+0x32c/0x580 ? module_flags+0x2f0/0x2f0 ? kmem_cache_free+0xf0/0x410 ? __fput+0x56f/0xab0 ? __fput+0x56f/0xab0 ? debug_smp_processor_id+0x17/0x20 __x64_sys_delete_module+0x4f/0x70 x64_sys_call+0x522/0x9f0 do_syscall_64+0x64/0x130 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x4b/0x53 RIP: 0033:0x7f8182c6ac8b Commit 24de1b7b231c ("wifi: ath12k: fix flush failure in recovery scenarios") added the change to decrement the pending packets count in case of recovery which make sense as ah->hw as well all ar's in it are intact during recovery, but during core deinit there is no use in decrementing packets count or waking up the empty waitq as the module is going to be removed also ar's from pending skb's can't be used and the packets should just be released back. To fix this, avoid accessing ar from skb->cb when driver is being unregistered. Tested-on: QCN9274 hw2.0 PCI WLAN.WBE.1.1.1-00214-QCAHKSWPL_SILICONZ-1 Tested-on: WCN7850 hw2.0 PCI WLAN.HMT.1.0.c5-00481-QCAHMTSWPL_V1.0_V2.0_SILICONZ-3

• CWE-416Use After FreeThe product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. At some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. Any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory "belongs" to the code that operates on the new pointer.