Re: [PATCH v3] Documentation: Document the Linux Kernel CVE process

Jiri Kosina
2024-02-14T13:43:47Z

On Wed, 14 Feb 2024, Greg Kroah-Hartman wrote:

> +No CVEs will be automatically assigned for unfixed security issues in
> +the Linux kernel; assignment will only automatically happen after a fix
> +is available and applied to a stable kernel tree, and it will be tracked
> +that way by the git commit id of the original fix.

I think this needs way more clarification .. how exactly is this going to
work?

Do I read this correctly that *everything* that lands in -stable will
automatically get CVE assigned? If so, that's just plain crazy. Just took
a random peek on the topmost -stable changelog ...

ASoC: codecs: wsa883x: fix PA volume control
ASoC: codecs: lpass-wsa-macro: fix compander volume hack
ASoC: codecs: wcd938x: fix headphones volume controls
ASoC: qcom: sc8280xp: limit speaker volumes
drm/amdgpu: Fix missing error code in 'gmc_v6/7/8/9_0_hw_init()'

Only the last one can *potentially* be considered a CVE candidate, but
someone would actually have to take a *deep* look. Most likely it'll be a
functional issue, but not a security issue by any measures.

So I hope it's not the case, and someone will actually be doing some
triage. If that's the case -- is this process described anywhere?

Also, how are the CVSS-like scores going to be assigned? There are no
details whatsoever about that in the document.

In any case, by making this change we are going to make security theathre
industry super-happy (they will have a lot of expensive nothing going on),
and all the distros not basing on -stable very unhappy (we're already
drowning because everybody and his grandma wants to become famous by
publishing a CVE for something completely irrelevant). If this is the
intention, it should be spelled out loud and clear.

Thanks,

--
Jiri Kosina
SUSE Labs