(RHSA-2009:0021) Important: kernel security update

The kernel packages contain the Linux kernel, the core of any Linux
operating system.

This update includes backported fixes for four security issues. These
issues only affected users of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.2 Extended Update
Support as they have already been addressed for users of Red Hat Enterprise
Linux 5 in the 5.3 update, RHSA-2009:0225.

In accordance with the support policy, future security updates to Red Hat
Enterprise Linux 5.2 Extended Update Support will only include issues of
critical security impact.

• when fput() was called to close a socket, the __scm_destroy() function
  in the Linux kernel could make indirect recursive calls to itself. This
  could, potentially, lead to a denial of service issue. (CVE-2008-5029,
  Important)

• the sendmsg() function in the Linux kernel did not block during UNIX
  socket garbage collection. This could, potentially, lead to a local denial
  of service. (CVE-2008-5300, Important)

• a flaw was found in the Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) subsystem. A
  local, unprivileged user could use the flaw to listen on the same socket
  more than once, possibly causing a denial of service. (CVE-2008-5079,
  Important)

• a race condition was found in the Linux kernel “inotify” watch removal
  and umount implementation. This could allow a local, unprivileged user
  to cause a privilege escalation or a denial of service. (CVE-2008-5182,
  Important)

Users should upgrade to these updated packages, which contain backported
patches to correct these issues. Note: for this update to take effect, the
system must be rebooted.