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Linux Kernel Memory Forensics: Detecting Loadable Kernel Module (LKM) Rootkits with Volatility 3

Reconstructing hidden task_struct lists, syscall table hooks, and eBPF tracepoints from raw LiME memory captures

Marcus Vance, M.Sc., GCFA — Digital Forensics Study Guide

Published: October 18, 2026 • Updated: Oct 21, 2026 • 477 words (3 min read)

Overview & Learning Objectives

Live response tools executed on a compromised Linux host cannot be trusted when a ring-0 Loadable Kernel Module (LKM) or eBPF rootkit hooks getdents64(), tcp4_seq_show(), or unlinks its module structure from the global modules doubly linked list. This member-protected article walks through physical RAM acquisition via LiME, Intermediate Symbol File (ISF) generation with dwarf2json, and cross-view differential analysis in Volatility 3.

Key Takeaways:

Acquire forensically sound raw/LiME physical memory images while preserving SHA-256 chain of custody.
Generate custom Volatility 3 DWARF Intermediate Symbol Files (ISF) for target Linux kernels.
Cross-reference active radix/rbtree PID structures against doubly linked task_struct lists to expose unlinked processes.

Table of Contents

1. Volatile Memory Acquisition & Order of Volatility

In accordance with RFC 3227 (Guidelines for Evidence Collection and Archiving), system physical RAM must be captured prior to disk imaging or network isolation whenever kernel-level subversion is suspected. Userland utilities (ps, netstat, ss, lsmod) rely on kernel-exported /proc virtual filesystem structures and system calls (sys_getdents64) that are trivially filtered by ring-0 rootkits.

TECHNICAL SUMMARY & PARAMETERS DIG-RAM-901

Sample / Substrate: 64 GB DDR5 ECC Physical RAM Dump (LiME Format)

Analytical Method: LiME v1.9.1 + Volatility Framework 3.7

Reference Method: ISO/IEC 27037 & NIST SP 800-86

Sensitivity / Range: Bit-level physical page frame inspection

Acquisition performed over isolated serial/network socket with immediate streaming SHA-256 digest computation to prevent disk write artifacts on the suspect volume.

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Advanced Difficulty Level

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