CVE-2022-42261

What it actually does

Unvalidated input index in the Virtual GPU Manager vGPU plugin allows an attacker-controlled value to exceed buffer bounds, resulting in memory corruption that can be leveraged for data tampering, information disclosure, or denial of service.

Why it matters to the business

Virtualized GPU workloads on affected NVIDIA platforms and hypervisors can experience host-level memory corruption, enabling guest-to-host escape scenarios that disrupt multiple tenants, leak sensitive data across VMs, or cause prolonged service outages in cloud, enterprise, and high-performance computing environments.

How an attack unfolds

An attacker with local access inside a guest VM that uses vGPU sends a crafted index value through the vGPU plugin interface; the missing bounds check permits an out-of-bounds write or read, which the attacker uses to corrupt adjacent kernel structures, disclose host memory, or crash the Virtual GPU Manager.

How to fix it

Apply the latest NVIDIA vGPU software release that contains the index-validation fix for all affected products including NVIDIA vGPU, Cloud Gaming, and GPU Display Driver; coordinate with hypervisor vendors (Citrix, Red Hat, VMware) for compatible host driver updates; where immediate patching is not feasible, restrict vGPU profile assignment to trusted workloads and monitor for anomalous plugin behavior.

How to confirm the fix worked

After applying updates, verify that the Virtual GPU Manager version matches the patched release notes, retest vGPU functionality with synthetic index inputs if a test harness is available, and confirm absence of the vulnerable code path via vendor-supplied SBOM or binary diffing against the fixed driver.

Typical attack path

1. Obtain code execution or shell access inside a guest VM assigned an NVIDIA vGPU profile
2. Load or interact with the guest vGPU driver to reach the Virtual GPU Manager plugin on the host
3. Supply a maliciously large or negative index value in a plugin API call
4. Trigger the buffer overrun to corrupt adjacent memory and achieve privilege escalation or data exfiltration on the host

How to detect it

Search hypervisor and guest kernel logs for repeated Virtual GPU Manager crashes or buffer-related warnings around the time of suspicious guest activity; correlate with NVIDIA driver event logs indicating plugin index errors or abnormal memory access patterns.

What your security team should do

• Prioritize patching of all NVIDIA vGPU deployments given the local attack vector and potential for host compromise
• Inventory hypervisors and guest workloads using vGPU profiles and schedule staged rollouts before the next maintenance window
• Add host-based monitoring for unusual Virtual GPU Manager crashes or memory-allocation anomalies
• Review and tighten guest VM isolation policies until patches are universally deployed