| .. _securitybugs: |
| |
| Security bugs |
| ============= |
| |
| Linux kernel developers take security very seriously. As such, we'd |
| like to know when a security bug is found so that it can be fixed and |
| disclosed as quickly as possible. Please report security bugs to the |
| Linux kernel security team. |
| |
| Contact |
| ------- |
| |
| The Linux kernel security team can be contacted by email at |
| <security@kernel.org>. This is a private list of security officers |
| who will help verify the bug report and develop and release a fix. |
| If you already have a fix, please include it with your report, as |
| that can speed up the process considerably. It is possible that the |
| security team will bring in extra help from area maintainers to |
| understand and fix the security vulnerability. |
| |
| As it is with any bug, the more information provided the easier it |
| will be to diagnose and fix. Please review the procedure outlined in |
| 'Documentation/admin-guide/reporting-issues.rst' if you are unclear about what |
| information is helpful. Any exploit code is very helpful and will not |
| be released without consent from the reporter unless it has already been |
| made public. |
| |
| Please send plain text emails without attachments where possible. |
| It is much harder to have a context-quoted discussion about a complex |
| issue if all the details are hidden away in attachments. Think of it like a |
| :doc:`regular patch submission <../process/submitting-patches>` |
| (even if you don't have a patch yet): describe the problem and impact, list |
| reproduction steps, and follow it with a proposed fix, all in plain text. |
| |
| Disclosure and embargoed information |
| ------------------------------------ |
| |
| The security list is not a disclosure channel. For that, see Coordination |
| below. |
| |
| Once a robust fix has been developed, the release process starts. Fixes |
| for publicly known bugs are released immediately. |
| |
| Although our preference is to release fixes for publicly undisclosed bugs |
| as soon as they become available, this may be postponed at the request of |
| the reporter or an affected party for up to 7 calendar days from the start |
| of the release process, with an exceptional extension to 14 calendar days |
| if it is agreed that the criticality of the bug requires more time. The |
| only valid reason for deferring the publication of a fix is to accommodate |
| the logistics of QA and large scale rollouts which require release |
| coordination. |
| |
| While embargoed information may be shared with trusted individuals in |
| order to develop a fix, such information will not be published alongside |
| the fix or on any other disclosure channel without the permission of the |
| reporter. This includes but is not limited to the original bug report |
| and followup discussions (if any), exploits, CVE information or the |
| identity of the reporter. |
| |
| In other words our only interest is in getting bugs fixed. All other |
| information submitted to the security list and any followup discussions |
| of the report are treated confidentially even after the embargo has been |
| lifted, in perpetuity. |
| |
| Coordination |
| ------------ |
| |
| Fixes for sensitive bugs, such as those that might lead to privilege |
| escalations, may need to be coordinated with the private |
| <linux-distros@vs.openwall.org> mailing list so that distribution vendors |
| are well prepared to issue a fixed kernel upon public disclosure of the |
| upstream fix. Distros will need some time to test the proposed patch and |
| will generally request at least a few days of embargo, and vendor update |
| publication prefers to happen Tuesday through Thursday. When appropriate, |
| the security team can assist with this coordination, or the reporter can |
| include linux-distros from the start. In this case, remember to prefix |
| the email Subject line with "[vs]" as described in the linux-distros wiki: |
| <http://oss-security.openwall.org/wiki/mailing-lists/distros#how-to-use-the-lists> |
| |
| CVE assignment |
| -------------- |
| |
| The security team does not normally assign CVEs, nor do we require them |
| for reports or fixes, as this can needlessly complicate the process and |
| may delay the bug handling. If a reporter wishes to have a CVE identifier |
| assigned ahead of public disclosure, they will need to contact the private |
| linux-distros list, described above. When such a CVE identifier is known |
| before a patch is provided, it is desirable to mention it in the commit |
| message if the reporter agrees. |
| |
| Non-disclosure agreements |
| ------------------------- |
| |
| The Linux kernel security team is not a formal body and therefore unable |
| to enter any non-disclosure agreements. |