Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2021-47106

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-03-04
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.15.12 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
Zero-click Patch available

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfilter: nf_tables: fix use-after-free in nft_set_catchall_destroy() We need to use list_for_each_entry_safe() iterator because we can not access @catchall after kfree_rcu() call. syzbot reported: BUG: KASAN: use-after-free in nft_set_catchall_destroy net/netfilter/nf_tables_api.c:4486 [inline] BUG: KASAN: use-after-free in nft_set_destroy net/netfilter/nf_tables_api.c:4504 [inline] BUG: KASAN: use-after-free in nft_set_destroy+0x3fd/0x4f0 net/netfilter/nf_tables_api.c:4493 Read of size 8 at addr ffff8880716e5b80 by task syz-executor.3/8871 CPU: 1 PID: 8871 Comm: syz-executor.3 Not tainted 5.16.0-rc5-syzkaller #0 Hardware name: Google Google Compute Engine/Google Compute Engine, BIOS Google 01/01/2011 Call Trace: <TASK> __dump_stack lib/dump_stack.c:88 [inline] dump_stack_lvl+0xcd/0x134 lib/dump_stack.c:106 print_address_description.constprop.0.cold+0x8d/0x2ed mm/kasan/report.c:247 __kasan_report mm/kasan/report.c:433 [inline] kasan_report.cold+0x83/0xdf mm/kasan/report.c:450 nft_set_catchall_destroy net/netfilter/nf_tables_api.c:4486 [inline] nft_set_destroy net/netfilter/nf_tables_api.c:4504 [inline] nft_set_destroy+0x3fd/0x4f0 net/netfilter/nf_tables_api.c:4493 __nft_release_table+0x79f/0xcd0 net/netfilter/nf_tables_api.c:9626 nft_rcv_nl_event+0x4f8/0x670 net/netfilter/nf_tables_api.c:9688 notifier_call_chain+0xb5/0x200 kernel/notifier.c:83 blocking_notifier_call_chain kernel/notifier.c:318 [inline] blocking_notifier_call_chain+0x67/0x90 kernel/notifier.c:306 netlink_release+0xcb6/0x1dd0 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:788 __sock_release+0xcd/0x280 net/socket.c:649 sock_close+0x18/0x20 net/socket.c:1314 __fput+0x286/0x9f0 fs/file_table.c:280 task_work_run+0xdd/0x1a0 kernel/task_work.c:164 tracehook_notify_resume include/linux/tracehook.h:189 [inline] exit_to_user_mode_loop kernel/entry/common.c:175 [inline] exit_to_user_mode_prepare+0x27e/0x290 kernel/entry/common.c:207 __syscall_exit_to_user_mode_work kernel/entry/common.c:289 [inline] syscall_exit_to_user_mode+0x19/0x60 kernel/entry/common.c:300 do_syscall_64+0x42/0xb0 arch/x86/entry/common.c:86 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x44/0xae RIP: 0033:0x7f75fbf28adb Code: 0f 05 48 3d 00 f0 ff ff 77 45 c3 0f 1f 40 00 48 83 ec 18 89 7c 24 0c e8 63 fc ff ff 8b 7c 24 0c 41 89 c0 b8 03 00 00 00 0f 05 <48> 3d 00 f0 ff ff 77 35 44 89 c7 89 44 24 0c e8 a1 fc ff ff 8b 44 RSP: 002b:00007ffd8da7ec10 EFLAGS: 00000293 ORIG_RAX: 0000000000000003 RAX: 0000000000000000 RBX: 0000000000000004 RCX: 00007f75fbf28adb RDX: 00007f75fc08e828 RSI: ffffffffffffffff RDI: 0000000000000003 RBP: 00007f75fc08a960 R08: 0000000000000000 R09: 00007f75fc08e830 R10: 00007ffd8da7ed10 R11: 0000000000000293 R12: 00000000002067c3 R13: 00007ffd8da7ed10 R14: 00007f75fc088f60 R15: 0000000000000032 </TASK> Allocated by task 8886: kasan_save_stack+0x1e/0x50 mm/kasan/common.c:38 kasan_set_track mm/kasan/common.c:46 [inline] set_alloc_info mm/kasan/common.c:434 [inline] ____kasan_kmalloc mm/kasan/common.c:513 [inline] ____kasan_kmalloc mm/kasan/common.c:472 [inline] __kasan_kmalloc+0xa6/0xd0 mm/kasan/common.c:522 kasan_kmalloc include/linux/kasan.h:269 [inline] kmem_cache_alloc_trace+0x1ea/0x4a0 mm/slab.c:3575 kmalloc include/linux/slab.h:590 [inline] nft_setelem_catchall_insert net/netfilter/nf_tables_api.c:5544 [inline] nft_setelem_insert net/netfilter/nf_tables_api.c:5562 [inline] nft_add_set_elem+0x232e/0x2f40 net/netfilter/nf_tables_api.c:5936 nf_tables_newsetelem+0x6ff/0xbb0 net/netfilter/nf_tables_api.c:6032 nfnetlink_rcv_batch+0x1710/0x25f0 net/netfilter/nfnetlink.c:513 nfnetlink_rcv_skb_batch net/netfilter/nfnetlink.c:634 [inline] nfnetlink_rcv+0x3af/0x420 net/netfilter/nfnetlink.c:652 netlink_unicast_kernel net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1319 [inline] netlink_unicast+0x533/0x7d0 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1345 netlink_sendmsg+0x904/0xdf0 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1921 sock_sendmsg_nosec net/ ---truncated---

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis
How this class of weakness works · CWE-416

Memory is used after it has been freed, so its contents — now potentially attacker-controlled — drive the program's behaviour. With careful heap grooming this becomes code execution. The fix requires disciplined ownership of memory and often a targeted rework of the object lifecycle.

General guidance for the use after free class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Linux KernelOperating system
Affected:>= 5.13, < 5.15.12= 5.16

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 5.15.12 or later
Fixed in 5.15.12
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Linux Kernel 5.15.12 or later / Linux Kernel 5.16.1 or later

  1. 1. Identify the currently running Linux kernel version using `uname -r`
  2. 2. Check if the kernel version falls within the affected range: >= 5.13 and < 5.15.12, or exactly 5.16
  3. 3. If affected, upgrade the kernel to version 5.15.12 or later, or to a newer stable 5.16.x release (e.g., 5.16.1 or later)
  4. 4. Update the boot loader configuration if necessary to select the new kernel
  5. 5. Reboot the system to load the fixed kernel
  6. 6. Verify the new kernel version is running using `uname -r`
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require recompiling out-of-tree kernel modules; ensure compatibility of third-party drivers with the new kernel version

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

We can perform the upgrade in your staging environment and verify nothing breaks — typical engagement from $3,200. Get the upgrade done

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-47106 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-47106 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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