In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sata_fsl: fix UAF in sata_fsl_port_stop when rmmod sata_fsl When the `rmmod sata_fsl.ko` command is executed in the PPC64 GNU/Linux, a bug is reported: ================================================================== BUG: Unable to handle kernel data access on read at 0x80000800805b502c Oops: Kernel access of bad area, sig: 11 [#1] NIP [c0000000000388a4] .ioread32+0x4/0x20 LR [80000000000c6034] .sata_fsl_port_stop+0x44/0xe0 [sata_fsl] Call Trace: .free_irq+0x1c/0x4e0 (unreliable) .ata_host_stop+0x74/0xd0 [libata] .release_nodes+0x330/0x3f0 .device_release_driver_internal+0x178/0x2c0 .driver_detach+0x64/0xd0 .bus_remove_driver+0x70/0xf0 .driver_unregister+0x38/0x80 .platform_driver_unregister+0x14/0x30 .fsl_sata_driver_exit+0x18/0xa20 [sata_fsl] .__se_sys_delete_module+0x1ec/0x2d0 .system_call_exception+0xfc/0x1f0 system_call_common+0xf8/0x200 ================================================================== The triggering of the BUG is shown in the following stack: driver_detach device_release_driver_internal __device_release_driver drv->remove(dev) --> platform_drv_remove/platform_remove drv->remove(dev) --> sata_fsl_remove iounmap(host_priv->hcr_base); <---- unmap kfree(host_priv); <---- free devres_release_all release_nodes dr->node.release(dev, dr->data) --> ata_host_stop ap->ops->port_stop(ap) --> sata_fsl_port_stop ioread32(hcr_base + HCONTROL) <---- UAF host->ops->host_stop(host) The iounmap(host_priv->hcr_base) and kfree(host_priv) functions should not be executed in drv->remove. These functions should be executed in host_stop after port_stop. Therefore, we move these functions to the new function sata_fsl_host_stop and bind the new function to host_stop.
The product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. At some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. Any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory "belongs" to the code that operates on the new pointer.