Cloud Foundry Logo
blog single gear
Security Advisory

USN-3540-2: Linux kernel (Xenial HWE) vulnerabilities

USN-3540-2: Linux kernel (Xenial HWE) vulnerabilities

Severity

Critical

Vendor

Canonical Ubuntu

Versions Affected

  • Canonical Ubuntu 14.04

Description

USN-3540-1 addressed vulnerabilities in the Linux kernel for Ubuntu 16.04 LTS. This update provides the corresponding updates for the Linux Hardware Enablement (HWE) kernel from Ubuntu 16.04 LTS for Ubuntu 14.04 LTS.

Jann Horn discovered that microprocessors utilizing speculative execution and branch prediction may allow unauthorized memory reads via sidechannel attacks. This flaw is known as Spectre. A local attacker could use this to expose sensitive information, including kernel memory. This update provides mitigations for the i386 (CVE-2017-5753 only), amd64, ppc64el, and s390x architectures. (CVE-2017-5715CVE-2017-5753)

USN-3522-2 mitigated CVE-2017-5754 (Meltdown) for the amd64 architecture in the Linux Hardware Enablement (HWE) kernel from Ubuntu 16.04 LTS for Ubuntu 14.04 LTS. This update provides the corresponding mitigations for the ppc64el architecture. Original advisory details:

Jann Horn discovered that microprocessors utilizing speculative execution and indirect branch prediction may allow unauthorized memory reads via sidechannel attacks. This flaw is known as Meltdown. A local attacker could use this to expose sensitive information, including kernel memory. (CVE-2017-5754)

Please Note: These stemcells address critical vulnerabilities in Ubuntu associated with Meltdown and Spectre. This update may include degradations to performance. The Cloud Foundry Project will be performing additional performance testing and will make updates to this notice as more information is available.

Affected Cloud Foundry Products and Versions

Severity is critical unless otherwise noted.

  • Cloud Foundry BOSH stemcells are vulnerable, including:
    • 3312.x versions prior to 3312.51
    • 3363.x versions prior to 3363.48
    • 3421.x versions prior to 3421.38
    • 3445.x versions prior to 3445.24
    • 3468.x versions prior to 3468.20
    • All other stemcells not listed.

Mitigation

OSS users are strongly encouraged to follow one of the mitigations below:

  • The Cloud Foundry project recommends upgrading the following BOSH stemcells:
    • Upgrade 3312.x versions to 3312.51
    • Upgrade 3363.x versions to 3363.48
    • Upgrade 3421.x versions to 3421.38
    • Upgrade 3445.x versions to 3445.24
    • Upgrade 3468.x versions to 3468.20
    • All other stemcells should be upgraded to the latest version available on bosh.io.

References

Cloud Foundry Foundation Security Team Profile Image

Cloud Foundry Foundation Security Team, AUTHOR

SEE ALL ARTICLES