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CVE-2011-0463: Linux kernel lets local users read leftover disk data

CVE-2011-0463 · published 15 years ago

Summary

A part of the Linux kernel that supports the OCFS2 shared file system, in versions before 2.6.39‑rc1, can expose data that should be empty on the disk. This means someone with access to the computer could potentially see information that was thought to be deleted or unrelated. Install the latest kernel updates from your Linux or Ubuntu distribution to resolve the issue and keep user accounts limited to only the permissions they need.

What to do

The CVE record does not list a fixed version. Check the vendor's site or the advisory links below - a fix may already be released.

Affected software

Vendor	Product	Affected versions
linux	linux_kernel	<= 2.6.38.2 `cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel::::::::`
canonical	ubuntu_linux	8.04 `cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:8.04::::lts:::`

Original advisory text

The ocfs2_prepare_page_for_write function in fs/ocfs2/aops.c in the Oracle Cluster File System 2 (OCFS2) subsystem in the Linux kernel before 2.6.39-rc1 does not properly handle holes that cross page boundaries, which allows local users to obtain potentially sensitive information from uninitialized disk locations by reading a file.

References

http://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux-2.6.git%3Ba=commit%3Bh=...
http://oss.oracle.com/pipermail/ocfs2-devel/2011-February/007846.html Exploit Patch Third Party Advisory
http://secunia.com/advisories/43966 Third Party Advisory
http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v2.6/testing/ChangeLog-2.6.39-rc1 Release Notes Vendor Advisory
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-1146-1 Third Party Advisory
https://bugzilla.novell.com/show_bug.cgi?id=673037 Exploit Issue Tracking Third Party Advisory

Fix within

Internet-facing 60 days

Internal At next upgrade

Not known to be exploited
Needs hands-on effort to exploit (estimated)
Gives an attacker partial control (estimated)

Severity

2.1 Low

Exploitation

<1% chance of attack within 30 days

Type

CWE-20Improper Input Validation

Timeline

Published10 Apr 2011

Updated4 Nov 2026

First seen29 Sep 2026

Sources

CVE-2011-0463 · NVD

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