Ubuntu 16.04 LTS : linux-hwe, linux-gcp vulnerabilities (USN-3777-2)
High Nessus Plugin ID 117873
Synopsis
The remote Ubuntu host is missing one or more security-related patches.
Description
USN-3777-1 fixed vulnerabilities in the Linux kernel for Ubuntu 18.04 LTS. This update provides the corresponding updates for the Linux Hardware Enablement (HWE) kernel from Ubuntu 18.04 LTS for Ubuntu 16.04 LTS.
Jann Horn discovered that the vmacache subsystem did not properly handle sequence number overflows, leading to a use-after-free vulnerability. A local attacker could use this to cause a denial of service (system crash) or execute arbitrary code. (CVE-2018-17182)
It was discovered that the paravirtualization implementation in the Linux kernel did not properly handle some indirect calls, reducing the effectiveness of Spectre v2 mitigations for paravirtual guests. A local attacker could use this to expose sensitive information.
(CVE-2018-15594)
It was discovered that microprocessors utilizing speculative execution and prediction of return addresses via Return Stack Buffer (RSB) may allow unauthorized memory reads via sidechannel attacks. An attacker could use this to expose sensitive information. (CVE-2018-15572)
Andy Lutomirski and Mika Penttila discovered that the KVM implementation in the Linux kernel did not properly check privilege levels when emulating some instructions. An unprivileged attacker in a guest VM could use this to escalate privileges within the guest.
(CVE-2018-10853)
It was discovered that a stack-based buffer overflow existed in the iSCSI target implementation of the Linux kernel. A remote attacker could use this to cause a denial of service (system crash).
(CVE-2018-14633)
It was discovered that a memory leak existed in the IRDA subsystem of the Linux kernel. A local attacker could use this to cause a denial of service (kernel memory exhaustion). (CVE-2018-6554)
It was discovered that a use-after-free vulnerability existed in the IRDA implementation in the Linux kernel. A local attacker could use this to cause a denial of service (system crash) or possibly execute arbitrary code. (CVE-2018-6555).
Note that Tenable Network Security has extracted the preceding description block directly from the Ubuntu security advisory. Tenable has attempted to automatically clean and format it as much as possible without introducing additional issues.
Solution
Update the affected packages.