CVE-2018-12232
MEDIUMEPSS 93th pctlDescription
In net/socket.c in the Linux kernel through 4.17.1, there is a race condition between fchownat and close in cases where they target the same socket file descriptor, related to the sock_close and sockfs_setattr functions. fchownat does not increment the file descriptor reference count, which allows close to set the socket to NULL during fchownat's execution, leading to a NULL pointer dereference and system crash.
How to fix
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
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Remediation is compiled from vendor and distribution security advisories. Always confirm against the linked source for your exact version and platform.
CVSS v3 Vector
Exploitability
Impact
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Exploit Intelligence
High risk: more likely to be exploited than 93% of all known CVEs.
References
Related Vulnerabilities
Other CWE-362 (Race Condition) vulnerabilities, ordered by exploit likelihood. View all
| CVE | Severity | CVSS | EPSS | Exploited | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2024-6387 | High | 8.1 | 100% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2023-36884 | High | 7.5 | 99% | KEV + Ransom | Fix |
| CVE-2018-15473 | Medium | 5.3 | 99% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2024-27983 | High | 8.2 | 87% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2014-0226 | Medium | 6.8 | 86% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2016-5195 | High | 7.0 | 84% | KEV | Fix |
Common questions
How do I fix CVE-2018-12232?
Published advisories record a fix for 28 affected products. The "How to fix" section on this page lists the fixed version and source advisory for each one, so apply the entry matching what you actually run.
Is CVE-2018-12232 being actively exploited?
Not that we know of. CVE-2018-12232 is not in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. Its EPSS score of 6.5% is the estimated probability that it will be exploited in the next 30 days. That is higher than 93% of all scored CVEs.
How severe is CVE-2018-12232?
CVE-2018-12232 has a CVSS v3 base score of 5.9, rated medium. CVSS rates the technical impact if the vulnerability is exploited, not how likely that is, so weigh it alongside the exploit-prediction score when you decide what to patch first.
What does CVE-2018-12232 affect?
Published advisories record a fix for kernel (Amazon), kernel-debuginfo (Amazon), kernel-debuginfo-common-x86_64 (Amazon), kernel-devel (Amazon), and 24 more. Only products with a sourced advisory are listed, so treat this as what we can cite rather than a complete inventory.
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This product uses NVD data but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS scores courtesy of FIRST.org (https://www.first.org/epss). Source: CISA KEV Catalog. Data as of 2026-06-17.