CVE-2013-2094

Exp

The perf_swevent_init function in kernel/events/core.c in the Linux kernel before 3.8.9 uses an incorrect integer data type, which allows local users to gain privileges via a crafted perf_event_open system call.

Published: 2013-05-14 Last update: 2026-04-22 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Analyzed，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2013-2094 is rated Critical Active Threat (92.6/100): CVSS High severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 65.85%, 99th percentile). CISA KEV confirms active exploitation (added 2022-09-15) affecting Linux / Kernel. a weakness (CWE-189) Unauthenticated remote administrative access may be possible. The CISA remediation deadline has passed—treat as an emergency patch priority.

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

CISA KEV Record for CVE-2013-2094

Name: Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation Vulnerability · CISA KEV detail

Exploit added: 2022-09-15

Action due: 2022-10-06

Required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Public exploit references (Exploit-DB) for CVE-2013-2094

EDB-ID Source Kind Published Link
33589 exploit_db edb 2014-05-31 Exploit-DB ↗
26131 exploit_db edb 2013-06-11 Exploit-DB ↗
25444 exploit_db edb 2013-05-14 Exploit-DB ↗
— nvd_ref exploit_tag Exploit-DB ↗

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2013-2094

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 2026-05-31 66.32% 65.85% -0.47%
2 2026-05-22 65.85% 66.32% +0.47%
3 2026-03-22 — 65.85% —

Full EPSS history (50 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2013-2094

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
8.4 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
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:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 2.5 5.9 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
7.2 2.0 HIGH
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/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:C)
Complete confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:C)
Complete integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:C)
Complete availability impact.
 3.9 10.0 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2013-2094

OS Trackers for CVE-2013-2094

vendor priority summary link
debian not yet assigned CVE-2013-2094 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (linux), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2013-2094
redhat high — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2013-2094
ubuntu high CVE-2013-2094 high priority: Ubuntu including 30 source packages (linux, linux-armadaxp, …), 327 status rows across 13 suites (lucid, precise, quantal, raring, saucy, trusty, upstream, utopic, vivid, wily, xenial, yakkety, zesty): DNE 228, not-affected 41, released 40, ignored 18. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2013-2094

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2013-2094

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
linux linux_kernel < 3.0.75 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 3.1, < 3.2.45 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 3.3, < 3.4.42 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 3.5, < 3.8.9 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2013-2094

URL Tags
http://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux-2.6.git%3Ba=commit%3Bh=8176cced706b5e5d15887584150764894e94e02f Not Applicable
http://lists.centos.org/pipermail/centos-announce/2013-May/019729.html Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://lists.centos.org/pipermail/centos-announce/2013-May/019733.html Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2013-05/msg00008.html Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2013-05/msg00018.html Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2013-06/msg00005.html Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2013-06/msg00009.html Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2013-06/msg00017.html Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://lkml.indiana.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/1304.1/03652.html Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://lkml.indiana.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/1304.1/03976.html Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://lkml.indiana.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/1304.1/04302.html Third Party Advisory
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5703758 Third Party Advisory
http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/121616/semtex.c Exploit Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2013-0830.html Third Party Advisory
http://twitter.com/djrbliss/statuses/334301992648331267 Patch
http://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/33589 Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v3.x/ChangeLog-3.8.9 Not Applicable
http://www.mandriva.com/security/advisories?name=MDVSA-2013:176 Mailing List Third Party Advisory
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2013/05/14/6 Mailing List Third Party Advisory
http://www.osvdb.org/93361 Broken Link
http://www.reddit.com/r/netsec/comments/1eb9iw Third Party Advisory
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-1825-1 Third Party Advisory
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-1826-1 Third Party Advisory
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-1827-1 Third Party Advisory
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-1828-1 Third Party Advisory
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-1836-1 Third Party Advisory
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-1838-1 Third Party Advisory
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=962792 Issue Tracking
https://github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/8176cced706b5e5d15887584150764894e94e02f Third Party Advisory
https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2013-2094 US Government Resource
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