CVE-2024-0146: NVIDIA vGPU Manager RCE Vulnerability

CVE-2024-0146 Overview

CVE-2024-0146 is a memory corruption vulnerability in NVIDIA vGPU software's Virtual GPU Manager component. This vulnerability allows a malicious guest virtual machine to corrupt memory in the host system, potentially leading to severe security consequences including code execution, denial of service, information disclosure, and data tampering.

The vulnerability is classified under CWE-120 (Buffer Copy without Checking Size of Input), commonly known as a classic buffer overflow. This type of flaw occurs when a program copies data to a buffer without first verifying that the input fits within the allocated space, enabling attackers to overwrite adjacent memory regions.

Critical Impact

A malicious guest VM can exploit this vulnerability to corrupt host memory, potentially achieving code execution on the hypervisor, causing system-wide denial of service, or accessing sensitive data from other virtual machines.

Affected Products

• NVIDIA vGPU software (Virtual GPU Manager component)
• NVIDIA virtualization environments utilizing vGPU technology
• Hypervisors running NVIDIA vGPU software

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-01-28 - CVE CVE-2024-0146 published to NVD
• 2025-01-28 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-0146

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability resides in the Virtual GPU Manager, a critical component responsible for managing GPU resources across multiple virtual machines in virtualized environments. The flaw enables a malicious guest operating system to trigger memory corruption in the host system through improper buffer handling.

The attack requires local access, meaning an attacker must have the ability to execute code within a guest virtual machine. However, no user interaction is required to trigger the vulnerability, and an attacker with low privileges can initiate the exploit. The impact is significant across all three security dimensions: confidentiality, integrity, and availability are all at high risk if the vulnerability is successfully exploited.

In virtualized GPU environments, the Virtual GPU Manager serves as an intermediary between guest VMs and the physical GPU hardware. When processing requests from guest systems, the component fails to properly validate input size before copying data, creating a buffer overflow condition that can be exploited for memory corruption.

Root Cause

The root cause is a buffer copy operation without adequate size validation (CWE-120). When the Virtual GPU Manager processes certain requests from guest virtual machines, it copies input data into a fixed-size buffer without verifying that the input does not exceed the buffer's allocated space. This oversight allows attackers to provide oversized input that overflows the buffer boundaries, corrupting adjacent memory structures.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is local, requiring the attacker to have access to a guest virtual machine in the virtualized environment. The exploitation flow involves:

1. An attacker gains access to a guest VM running on a hypervisor using NVIDIA vGPU software
2. The attacker crafts malicious input designed to overflow the vulnerable buffer in the Virtual GPU Manager
3. The oversized input is sent through the vGPU interface to the host's Virtual GPU Manager
4. The buffer overflow corrupts memory on the host system
5. Depending on what memory is corrupted, the attacker may achieve code execution, cause denial of service, leak sensitive information, or tamper with data

The vulnerability is particularly concerning in multi-tenant cloud environments where guests from different organizations share the same physical GPU resources, as it could enable cross-tenant attacks.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-0146

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual memory access patterns or crashes in the NVIDIA vGPU Manager service
• Unexpected system instability or kernel panics on hypervisors running vGPU software
• Anomalous GPU-related system calls or requests from guest virtual machines
• Evidence of memory corruption or buffer overflows in vGPU-related logs

Detection Strategies

• Monitor hypervisor logs for vGPU Manager errors, crashes, or unexpected restarts
• Implement host-based intrusion detection to identify suspicious memory access patterns
• Enable enhanced logging for vGPU Manager components to capture anomalous guest requests
• Deploy runtime memory protection mechanisms to detect buffer overflow attempts

Monitoring Recommendations

• Configure alerting for vGPU Manager service failures or unexpected terminations
• Monitor guest VM behavior for unusual GPU-related activity patterns
• Implement regular integrity checks on vGPU Manager binaries and configurations
• Track NVIDIA security advisories for updates related to CVE-2024-0146

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-0146

Immediate Actions Required

• Review the NVIDIA Security Advisory for the latest patch information
• Prioritize patching hypervisors running NVIDIA vGPU software in multi-tenant environments
• Assess which systems in your environment are running affected vGPU software versions
• Implement network segmentation to limit exposure of vulnerable systems while patching

Patch Information

NVIDIA has released a security update addressing this vulnerability. Administrators should consult the NVIDIA Support Document (Security Bulletin 5614) for detailed patching instructions and affected version information. Apply the latest vGPU software updates from NVIDIA as soon as possible to remediate this vulnerability.

Workarounds

• Restrict guest VM access to only trusted workloads until patches can be applied
• Consider temporarily disabling vGPU functionality for non-critical systems if feasible
• Implement additional monitoring and logging to detect potential exploitation attempts
• Limit administrative access to guest VMs to reduce the attack surface