CVE-2020-28588

MEDIUM

5.5

CVSS v3

Description

An information disclosure vulnerability exists in the /proc/pid/syscall functionality of Linux Kernel 5.1 Stable and 5.4.66. More specifically, this issue has been introduced in v5.1-rc4 (commit 631b7abacd02b88f4b0795c08b54ad4fc3e7c7c0) and is still present in v5.10-rc4, so it’s likely that all versions in between are affected. An attacker can read /proc/pid/syscall to trigger this vulnerability, which leads to the kernel leaking memory contents.

CWE-681

How to fix

Remediation Available

linuxDebian

Fixed in:5.9.15-1CVE-2020-28588

linuxUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-66.74USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-awsUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1038.40USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-aws-5.4Ubuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1038.40~18.04.1USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

linux-azureUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1040.42USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-azure-5.4Ubuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1040.42~18.04.1USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

linux-gcpUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1037.40USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-gcp-5.4Ubuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1037.40~18.04.1USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

linux-gke-5.4Ubuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1036.38~18.04.1USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

linux-gkeopUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1010.11USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-gkeop-5.4Ubuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1010.11~18.04.1USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

linux-hwe-5.4Ubuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-66.74~18.04.2USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

linux-hwe-5.8Ubuntu

Fixed in:5.8.0-44.50~20.04.1USN-4751-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.4.0-1010-gkeopUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1010.11~18.04.1USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

Fixed in:5.4.0-1010.11USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.4.0-1029-raspiUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1029.32~18.04.1USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

Fixed in:5.4.0-1029.32USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.4.0-1033-kvmUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1033.34USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.4.0-1036-gkeUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1036.38~18.04.1USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

linux-image-5.4.0-1037-gcpUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1037.40~18.04.1USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

Fixed in:5.4.0-1037.40USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.4.0-1038-awsUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1038.40~18.04.1USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

Fixed in:5.4.0-1038.40USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.4.0-1038-oracleUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1038.41~18.04.1USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

Fixed in:5.4.0-1038.41USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.4.0-1040-azureUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-1040.42~18.04.1USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

Fixed in:5.4.0-1040.42USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.4.0-66-genericUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-66.74~18.04.2USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

Fixed in:5.4.0-66.74USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.4.0-66-generic-lpaeUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-66.74~18.04.2USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

Fixed in:5.4.0-66.74USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.4.0-66-lowlatencyUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0-66.74~18.04.2USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

Fixed in:5.4.0-66.74USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.6.0-1048-oemUbuntu

Fixed in:5.6.0-1048.52USN-4752-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.8.0-44-genericUbuntu

Fixed in:5.8.0-44.50~20.04.1USN-4751-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.8.0-44-generic-lpaeUbuntu

Fixed in:5.8.0-44.50~20.04.1USN-4751-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-5.8.0-44-lowlatencyUbuntu

Fixed in:5.8.0-44.50~20.04.1USN-4751-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-awsUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0.1038.22USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

Fixed in:5.4.0.1038.39USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

linux-image-azureUbuntu

Fixed in:5.4.0.1040.20USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.

Fixed in:5.4.0.1040.38USN-4750-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.

This vulnerability affects an unusually large number of packages. The highest-confidence fixes are shown above; the full list is longer. Check the referenced advisories for complete coverage.

TridentStack Control can deploy fixes like this automatically across your Windows, macOS, and Linux fleet. See how it works

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

Attack VectorLocal

Attack ComplexityLow

Privileges RequiredLow

User InteractionNone

ScopeUnchanged

Impact

ConfidentialityHigh

IntegrityNone

AvailabilityNone

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

Exploit Intelligence

1.10%probability of exploitation in 30 days

64thpercentile

Moderate risk: more likely to be exploited than 64% of all known CVEs.

References

Exploit1

talosintelligence.com

Related Vulnerabilities

Other CWE-681 vulnerabilities, ordered by exploit likelihood. View all

CVE	Severity	CVSS	EPSS	Exploited	Fix
CVE-2022-34169	High	7.5	81%	-	Fix
CVE-2009-0231	High	8.8	37%	-	-
CVE-2016-3074	Critical	9.8	37%	-	Fix
CVE-2008-1721	High	7.5	23%	-	Fix
CVE-2017-7308	High	7.8	18%	-	Fix
CVE-2022-43663	High	8.1	14%	-	-

Common questions

How do I fix CVE-2020-28588?

Published advisories record a fix for 62 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-2020-28588 being actively exploited?

Not that we know of. CVE-2020-28588 is not in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. Its EPSS score of 1.1% is the estimated probability that it will be exploited in the next 30 days. That is higher than 64% of all scored CVEs.

How severe is CVE-2020-28588?

CVE-2020-28588 has a CVSS v3 base score of 5.5, 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-2020-28588 affect?

Published advisories record a fix for linux (Debian), linux (Ubuntu), linux-aws (Ubuntu), linux-aws-5.4 (Ubuntu), and 58 more. Only products with a sourced advisory are listed, so treat this as what we can cite rather than a complete inventory.

Embed a live status badge for CVE-2020-28588

Markdown

[![CVE-2020-28588](https://tridentstack.com/cve/badge/CVE-2020-28588.svg)](https://tridentstack.com/cve/CVE-2020-28588)

HTML

<a href="https://tridentstack.com/cve/CVE-2020-28588"><img src="https://tridentstack.com/cve/badge/CVE-2020-28588.svg" alt="CVE-2020-28588"></a>

Check your Linux endpoints for this class of vulnerability

TridentStack Control continuously scans Linux endpoints for known vulnerabilities and deploys the fixes from the same console. 200 endpoints free forever, no credit card.

Patch your fleet free Start freeThis CVE lookup is free and always will be.

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.