In the Linux kernel, the absence of a ceiling on the length of Ceph keys can lead to improper buffer handling during authentication. This omission allows an attacker to supply a key whose material exceeds the fixed‑size buffer used in process_auth_done(), potentially causing memory corruption or denial of service. The unchecked length check represents a classic buffer overflow or improper input validation flaw. Because the vulnerability resides in kernel authentication code, an attacker would need to supply malicious input during Ceph authentication. The impact is local to the kernel process that handles authentication, and a successful exploitation could compromise confidentiality, integrity or availability of the affected system.

The affected system is the Linux kernel. Version information is not specified in the CVE data; the flaw was addressed by a kernel patch that enforces CEPH_MAX_KEY_LEN, but the exact kernel releases that include the fix are not listed. Until a kernel containing this patch is deployed, Linux installations remain potentially vulnerable.

The CVSS score is 7.0 and the EPSS score is unavailable, indicating no known public exploits and the vulnerability is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog. Still, the weakness involves kernel authentication logic, meaning that an attacker would likely need to influence Ceph authentication traffic to the kernel, a limitation that reduces immediate exploitation risk but does not eliminate it. The potential for privilege escalation or kernel compromise makes the overall risk moderate to high for systems that use Ceph authentication without the patch.