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PatchSiren cyber security CVE debrief

CVE-2024-50180 Siemens CVE debrief

A buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the Linux kernel's sisfb framebuffer driver. The strbuf array, sized at 16 bytes, can be overflowed when sprintf() writes formatted resolution values (xres and yres) obtained from strbuf1. If strbuf1 contains non-digit characters including a space, the resulting formatted string can exceed the 16-byte buffer boundary, leading to a local denial-of-service condition. This vulnerability requires local access with low privileges and has no impact on confidentiality or integrity, but can cause high availability impact through system crash or instability.

Vendor
Siemens
Product
RUGGEDCOM RST2428P (6GK6242-6PA00)
CVSS
MEDIUM 5.5
CISA KEV
Not listed in stored evidence
Original CVE published
2025-08-12
Original CVE updated
2026-02-25
Advisory published
2025-08-12
Advisory updated
2026-02-25

Who should care

Organizations operating Siemens RUGGEDCOM RST2428P switches or SCALANCE XC-300/XR-300/XC-400/XR-500WG/XR-500 and XCM-/XRM-/XCH-/XRH-300 family industrial Ethernet switches should prioritize patching. System administrators responsible for industrial control system security, OT security teams, and infrastructure operators in critical manufacturing, energy, and transportation sectors should assess exposure and apply vendor fixes.

Technical summary

The sisfb driver in the Linux kernel contains a buffer overflow vulnerability in its string buffer handling. The strbuf array is allocated as 16 bytes, but values for xres and yres are parsed from strbuf1 which may contain non-digit characters including spaces. When these values are formatted via sprintf(strbuf, '%ux%ux8', xres, yres), the resulting string can exceed the 16-byte allocation, causing memory corruption. This is a local vulnerability exploitable by users with low privileges, resulting in denial-of-service through system crash or kernel instability. The vulnerability affects Siemens industrial networking products running vulnerable Linux kernel versions.

Defensive priority

medium

Recommended defensive actions

  • Apply vendor-provided firmware updates to V3.2 or later for affected Siemens RUGGEDCOM and SCALANCE products
  • For SCALANCE XC-300/XR-300/XC-400/XR-500WG/XR-500 family, consult vendor documentation for specific configuration guidance
  • Implement defense-in-depth strategies for industrial control systems per CISA recommended practices
  • Restrict local access to affected systems to authorized personnel only
  • Monitor for anomalous system crashes or instability in framebuffer-dependent operations

Evidence notes

The vulnerability description indicates a classic buffer overflow in kernel framebuffer code. The strbuf array is fixed at 16 bytes, but the sprintf() format string '%ux%ux8' combined with resolution values parsed from potentially malformed strbuf1 input can produce output exceeding this bound. The CVSS vector confirms local attack vector with low attack complexity and low privileges required.

Sources and references

Verified primary and authoritative sources

  • CVE-2024-50180 CVE Program record

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2024-50180

    CVE Program - Official CVE Program record with source-provided CVE metadata.

  • CVE-2024-50180 NVD vulnerability detail

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-50180

    NIST National Vulnerability Database - Official NIST NVD detail page and source-specific vulnerability assessment.

Supplemental references

  • Source item URL

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/cisagov/CSAF/develop/csaf_files/OT/white/2025/icsa-25-226-07.json

    cisa_csaf

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/csaf/ssa-355557.json

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/html/ssa-355557.html

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/ics-advisories/icsa-25-226-07

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/ics-alerts/ics-alert-10-301-01

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/resources-tools/resources/ics-recommended-practices

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/topics/industrial-control-systems

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/recommended_practices/NCCIC_ICS-CERT_Defense_in_Depth_2016_S508C.pdf

    Reference

Methodology and review provenance

AI-assisted synthesis based on stored public vulnerability evidence. System validation, approval state, and publication status do not by themselves establish human review of this revision. PatchSiren helps prioritize defensive review and does not prove exposure or remediation on any system.