Vulnerability Monitor

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CVE-2004-0427


The do_fork function in Linux 2.4.x before 2.4.26, and 2.6.x before 2.6.6, does not properly decrement the mm_count counter when an error occurs after the mm_struct for a child process has been activated, which triggers a memory leak that allows local users to cause a denial of service (memory exhaustion) via the clone (CLONE_VM) system call.


Security Impact Summary

CVE-2004-0427 is a security vulnerability that . Impacting 1 product from linux organizations running these solutions should prioritize assessment and patching.

Historical Context

Originally identified in 2004, this vulnerability predates many modern security frameworks and practices. The vulnerability landscape of that era was characterized by different threat models and less mature defense mechanisms compared to contemporary standards.


Published

2004-07-07T04:00:00.000

Last Modified

2026-04-16T00:27:16.627

Status

Modified

Source

[email protected]

Severity

CVSSv2: 2.1 (LOW)

CVSSv2 Vector

AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:P

  • Access Vector: LOCAL
  • Access Complexity: LOW
  • Authentication: NONE
  • Confidentiality Impact: NONE
  • Integrity Impact: NONE
  • Availability Impact: PARTIAL
Exploitability Score

3.9

Impact Score

2.9

Weaknesses
  • Type: Primary
    CWE-401

Affected Vendors & Products
Type Vendor Product Version/Range Vulnerable?
Operating System linux linux_kernel < 2.4.26 Yes
Operating System linux linux_kernel < 2.6.6 Yes

References

How SecUtils Interprets This CVE

SecUtils normalizes and enriches National Vulnerability Database (NVD) records by standardizing vendor and product identifiers, aggregating vulnerability metadata from both NVD and MITRE sources, and providing structured context for security teams. For linux's affected products, we extract Common Platform Enumeration (CPE) data, Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) classifications, CVSS severity metrics, and reference data to enable rapid vulnerability prioritization and asset correlation. This record contains no exploit code, proof-of-concept instructions, or attack methodologies—only defensive intelligence necessary for patch management, risk assessment, and security operations.