CVE-2012-0879

The I/O implementation for block devices in the Linux kernel before 2.6.33 does not properly handle the CLONE_IO feature, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (I/O instability) by starting multiple processes that share an I/O context.

Published: 2012-05-17 Last update: 2026-04-29 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2012-0879 is rated Low Risk (26.8/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.04%). Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2012-0879

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-04-08 0.08% 0.04% -0.04%
2 2025-09-07 0.01% 0.08% +0.07%
3 2025-03-17 — 0.01% —

Full EPSS history (6 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2012-0879

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
5.5 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 1.8 3.6 [email protected]
4.9 2.0 MEDIUM
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:C Click to expand
Access vector (AV:L)
Requires local access to the target system.
Access complexity (AC:L)
Exploitation conditions are straightforward and predictable.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:N)
No confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:N)
No integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:C)
Complete availability impact.
 3.9 6.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2012-0879

OS Trackers for CVE-2012-0879

vendor priority summary link
redhat medium — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2012-0879
ubuntu low CVE-2012-0879 low priority: Ubuntu including 11 source packages (linux, linux-armadaxp, …), 94 status rows across 9 suites (hardy, lucid, maverick, natty, oneiric, precise, quantal, raring, upstream): DNE 57, not-affected 17, released 14, ignored 6. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2012-0879

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2012-0879

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
linux linux_kernel < 2.6.33 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
canonical ubuntu_linux 10.04 cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:10.04:*:*:*:-:*:*:*
debian debian_linux 6.0 cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
suse linux_enterprise_desktop 11 cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_desktop:11:sp1:*:*:*:*:*:*
suse linux_enterprise_desktop 11 cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_desktop:11:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:*
suse linux_enterprise_high_availability_extension 11 cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_high_availability_extension:11:sp1:*:*:*:*:*:*
suse linux_enterprise_server 11 cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_server:11:sp1:*:*:*:*:*:*
suse linux_enterprise_server 11 cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_server:11:sp1:*:*:*:vmware:*:*
suse linux_enterprise_server 11 cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_server:11:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2012-0879

URL Tags
http://ftp.osuosl.org/pub/linux/kernel/v2.6/ChangeLog-2.6.33 Broken Link
http://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux-2.6.git%3Ba=commit%3Bh=61cc74fbb87af6aa551a06a370590c9bc07e29d9
http://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux-2.6.git%3Ba=commit%3Bh=b69f2292063d2caf37ca9aec7d63ded203701bf3
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2012-05/msg00013.html Mailing List Third Party Advisory
http://marc.info/?l=bugtraq&m=139447903326211&w=2 Mailing List Third Party Advisory
http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2012-0481.html Third Party Advisory
http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2012-0531.html Third Party Advisory
http://secunia.com/advisories/48545 Not Applicable
http://secunia.com/advisories/48842 Not Applicable
http://www.debian.org/security/2012/dsa-2469 Third Party Advisory
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2012/02/23/5 Mailing List Third Party Advisory
http://www.securitytracker.com/id?1027086 Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-1408-1 Third Party Advisory
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-1410-1 Third Party Advisory
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-1411-1 Third Party Advisory
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=796829 Issue Tracking Patch Third Party Advisory
https://github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/61cc74fbb87af6aa551a06a370590c9bc07e29d9 Patch Third Party Advisory
https://github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/b69f2292063d2caf37ca9aec7d63ded203701bf3 Patch Third Party Advisory
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