CVE-2025-21642: mptcp: sysctl: sched: avoid using current->nsproxy

Published Jan 19, 2025
·
Updated

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

mptcp: sysctl: sched: avoid using current->nsproxy

Using the 'net' structure via 'current' is not recommended for different reasons.

First, if the goal is to use it to read or write per-netns data, this is inconsistent with how the "generic" sysctl entries are doing: directly by only using pointers set to the table entry, e.g. table->data. Linked to that, the per-netns data should always be obtained from the table linked to the netns it had been created for, which may not coincide with the reader's or writer's netns.

Another reason is that access to current->nsproxy->netns can oops if attempted when current->nsproxy had been dropped when the current task is exiting. This is what syzbot found, when using acct(2):

Oops: general protection fault, probably for non-canonical address 0xdffffc0000000005: 0000 [#1] PREEMPT SMP KASAN PTI KASAN: null-ptr-deref in range [0x0000000000000028-0x000000000000002f] CPU: 1 UID: 0 PID: 5924 Comm: syz-executor Not tainted 6.13.0-rc5-syzkaller-00004-gccb98ccef0e5 #0 Hardware name: Google Google Compute Engine/Google Compute Engine, BIOS Google 09/13/2024 RIP: 0010:procscheduler+0xc6/0x3c0 net/mptcp/ctrl.c:125 Code: 03 42 80 3c 38 00 0f 85 fe 02 00 00 4d 8b a4 24 08 09 00 00 48 b8 00 00 00 00 00 fc ff df 49 8d 7c 24 28 48 89 fa 48 c1 ea 03 <80> 3c 02 00 0f 85 cc 02 00 00 4d 8b 7c 24 28 48 8d 84 24 c8 00 00 RSP: 0018:ffffc900034774e8 EFLAGS: 00010206

RAX: dffffc0000000000 RBX: 1ffff9200068ee9e RCX: ffffc90003477620 RDX: 0000000000000005 RSI: ffffffff8b08f91e RDI: 0000000000000028 RBP: 0000000000000001 R08: ffffc90003477710 R09: 0000000000000040 R10: 0000000000000040 R11: 00000000726f7475 R12: 0000000000000000 R13: ffffc90003477620 R14: ffffc90003477710 R15: dffffc0000000000 FS: 0000000000000000(0000) GS:ffff8880b8700000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000 CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033 CR2: 00007fee3cd452d8 CR3: 000000007d116000 CR4: 00000000003526f0 DR0: 0000000000000000 DR1: 0000000000000000 DR2: 0000000000000000 DR3: 0000000000000000 DR6: 00000000fffe0ff0 DR7: 0000000000000400 Call Trace: <TASK> procsyscallhandler+0x403/0x5d0 fs/proc/procsysctl.c:601 kernelwriteiter+0x318/0xa80 fs/readwrite.c:612 kernelwrite+0xf6/0x140 fs/readwrite.c:632 doacctprocess+0xcb0/0x14a0 kernel/acct.c:539 acctpinkill+0x2d/0x100 kernel/acct.c:192 pinkill+0x194/0x7c0 fs/fspin.c:44 mntpinkill+0x61/0x1e0 fs/fspin.c:81 cleanupmnt+0x3ac/0x450 fs/namespace.c:1366 taskworkrun+0x14e/0x250 kernel/taskwork.c:239 exittaskwork include/linux/taskwork.h:43 [inline] doexit+0xad8/0x2d70 kernel/exit.c:938 dogroupexit+0xd3/0x2a0 kernel/exit.c:1087 getsignal+0x2576/0x2610 kernel/signal.c:3017 archdosignalorrestart+0x90/0x7e0 arch/x86/kernel/signal.c:337 exittousermodeloop kernel/entry/common.c:111 [inline] exittousermodeprepare include/linux/entry-common.h:329 [inline] syscallexittousermodework kernel/entry/common.c:207 [inline] syscallexittousermode+0x150/0x2a0 kernel/entry/common.c:218 dosyscall64+0xda/0x250 arch/x86/entry/common.c:89 entrySYSCALL64afterhwframe+0x77/0x7f RIP: 0033:0x7fee3cb87a6a Code: Unable to access opcode bytes at 0x7fee3cb87a40. RSP: 002b:00007fffcccac688 EFLAGS: 00000202 ORIGRAX: 0000000000000037 RAX: 0000000000000000 RBX: 00007fffcccac710 RCX: 00007fee3cb87a6a RDX: 0000000000000041 RSI: 0000000000000000 RDI: 0000000000000003 RBP: 0000000000000003 R08: 00007fffcccac6ac R09: 00007fffcccacac7 R10: 00007fffcccac710 R11: 0000000000000202 R12: 00007fee3cd49500 R13: 00007fffcccac6ac R14: 0000000000000000 R15: 00007fee3cd4b000 </TASK> Modules linked in: ---[ end trace 0000000000000000 ]--- RIP: 0010:procscheduler+0xc6/0x3c0 net/mptcp/ctrl.c:125 Code: 03 42 80 3c 38 00 0f 85 fe 02 00 00 4d 8b a4 24 08 09 00 00 48 b8 00 00 00 00 00 fc ---truncated---

Other sources

This CVE was automatically created from a reference found in an email or other text. If you are reading this, then this CVE entry is probably erroneous, since this text should be replaced by the official CVE description automatically.

Launchpad

Affected Software

10 affected componentsFixes available
Linux Kernel
Linux Linux kernel>=6.6.31<6.6.72
Linux Linux kernel>=6.8.10<6.12.10
Linux Linux kernel=6.13-rc1
Linux Linux kernel=6.13-rc2
Linux Linux kernel=6.13-rc3
Linux Linux kernel=6.13-rc4
Linux Linux kernel=6.13-rc5
Linux Linux kernel=6.13-rc6
debian/linux
5.10.223-15.10.234-16.1.129-16.1.135-16.12.27-1

Event History

Jan 19, 2025
CVE Published
via MITRE·10:17 AM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·10:17 AM
Description
Data Sourced
via NVD·11:15 AM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityWeaknessAffected Software
Mar 31, 2025
Data Sourced
via Launchpad·06:51 PM
Description
Apr 28, 2025
Data Sourced
via Ubuntu·06:57 PM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityAffected Software

Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is the severity of CVE-2025-21642?

The severity of CVE-2025-21642 is categorized as moderate.

2

How do I fix CVE-2025-21642?

Fixing CVE-2025-21642 requires updating the Linux kernel to the latest version where the vulnerability has been resolved.

3

What is the impact of CVE-2025-21642?

The impact of CVE-2025-21642 relates to potential data handling issues due to improper use of the 'net' structure.

4

Which versions of the Linux kernel are affected by CVE-2025-21642?

CVE-2025-21642 affects multiple versions of the Linux kernel prior to the patch release that resolves the vulnerability.

5

Is CVE-2025-21642 being actively exploited?

As of now, there is no public information indicating that CVE-2025-21642 is actively being exploited.

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