IRONSMITHINTEL
HIGHCVSS8.8
|
Actively Exploited
|CISA KEV|CVE-2022-38181|Auth: low — authenticated user|Reboot: required|Manual only

Arm Mali GPU Kernel Driver Use-After-Free Vulnerability (CVE-2022-38181)

Arm Mali GPU Kernel Driver contains a use-after-free vulnerability that may allow a non-privileged user to gain root privilege and/or disclose information.

Published Oct 25, 2022 · Updated May 17, 2026
Why patchRisk explained in plain English
Worst-case scenarioIf unpatched

A remote attacker, with a low-privilege account, can achieve full data confidentiality loss, arbitrary modification of data, complete denial of service or system unavailability. Federal agencies are required to remediate by 2023-04-20 under CISA BOD 22-01.

How the attack worksNo clicks needed

This is a Use After Free (CWE-416) vulnerability in Arm Mali Graphics Processing Unit (GPU). The Arm Mali GPU kernel driver allows unprivileged users to access freed memory because GPU memory operations are mishandled. This affects Bifrost r0p0 through r38p1, and r39p0; Valhall r19p0 through r38p1, and r39p0; and Midgard r4p0 through r32p0. Exploitation requires remote network access, low attack complexity, a low-privilege authenticated account, and no user interaction required.

Am I affected?Quick check

Probably yes if any of these apply:

IT Security
Running bifrost gpu kernel driver: r0p0 ≤ v ≤ r38p1, r39p0; midgard gpu kernel driver: r4p0 ≤ v ≤ r31p0; valhall gpu kernel driver: r19p0 ≤ v ≤ r38p1, r39p0
Real-world incidentsWhat we've seen

Active exploitation documented in the wild. Threat-research write-up: https://github.blog/2023-01-23-pwning-the-all-google-phone-with-a-non-google-bug/

How to patch

Manual remediation steps

1
Identify affected hosts: query inventory for general installs in scope.
2
Apply the vendor security update referenced in CVE-2022-38181's advisory. No specific KB/version is encoded yet — consult the linked MSRC/vendor URL.
3
Verify the fix per the vendor's published verification steps.
4
Document the remediation in your change ticket and re-scan with your vulnerability scanner to confirm closure.
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