Kernel: kvm: ARM64: assert failure when accessing PMCCNTR register
Published Sep 20, 2017
6.0
MEDIUMCVSS 3.1
EPSS 0.42%
Description
The access_pmu_evcntr function in arch/arm64/kvm/sys_regs.c in the Linux kernel before 4.8.11 allows privileged KVM guest OS users to cause a denial of service (assertion failure and host OS crash) by accessing the Performance Monitors Cycle Count Register (PMCCNTR).
Affected products
- Vendor n/a Product Linux kernel before 4.9 Defaultn/a
- Version Linux kernel before 4.9StatusaffectedConstraints-
- Version
Default status is the baseline for the product, each version can override it (e.g. patched versions marked unaffected).
| Vendor | Product | Default status | Versions | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| n/a | Linux kernel before 4.9 | n/a |
|
- ≤ 4.8.10
No data.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
kernel-alt-0:4.11.0-44.el7a
Fixed · RHEA-2017:3163
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
kernel
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
kernel
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
kernel
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
kernel-rt
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise MRG 2
realtime-kernel
Not affected
| Product | Package | State | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | kernel-alt-0:4.11.0-44.el7a | Fixed | RHEA-2017:3163 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 | kernel | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | kernel | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | kernel | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | kernel-rt | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise MRG 2 | realtime-kernel | Not affected | n/a |
No package ranges for this CVE.
Remediation
Red Hat statement
This issue does not affect the versions of the kernel package as shipped with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5, 6, 7 and Red Hat Enterprise MRG 2.
Metrics
No CVSS v4.0 score for this CVE.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H
CVSS:3.0/AV:A/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:C
This CVE is not in the KEV list.
No CISA SSVC assessment for this CVE yet.
Estimated probability of exploitation in the wild in the next 30 days (FIRST EPSS). As of Oct 2, 2026.
Score over time
2021–2026- EPSS v1
- EPSS v5
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
Percentile over time
- EPSS v1
- EPSS v5
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
Table of values (10 key points)
Flat stretches are collapsed; showing up to 120 newest points.
| Date | Score | Percentile | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2, 2026 | 0.42% (0.00417) | 33.73th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jun 15, 2026 | 0.42% (0.00417) | 33.09th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Mar 17, 2025 | 0.05% (0.00054) | 14.01th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Dec 12, 2024 | 0.06% (0.00059) | 26.93th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 25, 2024 | 0.06% (0.00059) | 24.81th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 7, 2023 | 0.06% (0.00059) | 22.80th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 6, 2023 | 0.95% (0.00950) | 32.28th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 4, 2022 | 0.95% (0.00950) | 13.46th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 3, 2022 | 1.29% (0.01294) | 30.79th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Apr 14, 2021 | 1.29% (0.01294) | 0.00th | v1 |
References (7)
- http://git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=9e3f7a29694049edd728e2400ab57ad7553e5aa9 x_refsource_CONFIRMIssue TrackingPatchThird Party Advisory
- http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v4.x/ChangeLog-4.8.11 x_refsource_CONFIRMRelease NotesVendor Advisory
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2017-12168 Vendor Advisory
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1492984 x_refsource_CONFIRMIssue TrackingPatchThird Party Advisory
- https://github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/9e3f7a29694049edd728e2400ab57ad7553e5aa9 x_refsource_CONFIRMIssue TrackingPatchThird Party Advisory
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-12168
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-12168
| Link | Providers | Tags |
|---|---|---|
| http://git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=9e3f7a29694049edd728e2400ab57ad7553e5aa9 | x_refsource_CONFIRMIssue TrackingPatchThird Party Advisory | |
| http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v4.x/ChangeLog-4.8.11 | x_refsource_CONFIRMRelease NotesVendor Advisory | |
| https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2017-12168 | Vendor Advisory | |
| https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1492984 | x_refsource_CONFIRMIssue TrackingPatchThird Party Advisory | |
| https://github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/9e3f7a29694049edd728e2400ab57ad7553e5aa9 | x_refsource_CONFIRMIssue TrackingPatchThird Party Advisory | |
| https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-12168 | ||
| https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-12168 |
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.