[PATCH 22/23] perf symbols: Add bounds checks to elf_read_build_id() note iteration

From: Arnaldo Carvalho de Melo

Date: Wed Jun 10 2026 - 15:57:34 EST


From: Arnaldo Carvalho de Melo <acme@xxxxxxxxxx>

elf_read_build_id() iterates ELF notes using pointer arithmetic
driven by n_namesz and n_descsz from the note headers. Neither
the note header read nor the subsequent name/desc advances are
checked against the section boundary. A malformed ELF file with
oversized note sizes causes out-of-bounds reads past the section
data buffer.

Add two bounds checks: verify the note header fits within the
remaining section data, and verify that namesz + descsz (after
alignment) fits before advancing the pointer.

Fixes: fd7a346ea292074e ("perf symbols: Filename__read_build_id should look at .notes section too")
Reported-by: sashiko-bot <sashiko-bot@xxxxxxxxxx>
Cc: Namhyung Kim <namhyung@xxxxxxxxxx>
Assisted-by: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Signed-off-by: Arnaldo Carvalho de Melo <acme@xxxxxxxxxx>
---
tools/perf/util/symbol-elf.c | 18 ++++++++++++++++--
1 file changed, 16 insertions(+), 2 deletions(-)

diff --git a/tools/perf/util/symbol-elf.c b/tools/perf/util/symbol-elf.c
index 10902a5dc6dbe6cc..d84e2e031d430cf5 100644
--- a/tools/perf/util/symbol-elf.c
+++ b/tools/perf/util/symbol-elf.c
@@ -835,10 +835,24 @@ static int elf_read_build_id(Elf *elf, void *bf, size_t size)
ptr = data->d_buf;
while (ptr < (data->d_buf + data->d_size)) {
GElf_Nhdr *nhdr = ptr;
- size_t namesz = NOTE_ALIGN(nhdr->n_namesz),
- descsz = NOTE_ALIGN(nhdr->n_descsz);
+ size_t namesz, descsz, remaining;
const char *name;

+ /* ensure the note header fits within the section */
+ if (ptr + sizeof(*nhdr) > data->d_buf + data->d_size)
+ break;
+
+ namesz = NOTE_ALIGN(nhdr->n_namesz);
+ descsz = NOTE_ALIGN(nhdr->n_descsz);
+
+ /* validate individually to avoid size_t overflow on 32-bit */
+ remaining = data->d_buf + data->d_size - ptr - sizeof(*nhdr);
+ if (namesz > remaining || descsz > remaining - namesz) {
+ pr_warning("%s: oversized note: n_namesz=%u, n_descsz=%u\n",
+ __func__, nhdr->n_namesz, nhdr->n_descsz);
+ break;
+ }
+
ptr += sizeof(*nhdr);
name = ptr;
ptr += namesz;
--
2.54.0