Linux KernelOperating system · Linux
CVE-2021-47269
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 · uneditedIn the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: usb: dwc3: ep0: fix NULL pointer exception There is no validation of the index from dwc3_wIndex_to_dep() and we might be referring a non-existing ep and trigger a NULL pointer exception. In certain configurations we might use fewer eps and the index might wrongly indicate a larger ep index than existing. By adding this validation from the patch we can actually report a wrong index back to the caller. In our usecase we are using a composite device on an older kernel, but upstream might use this fix also. Unfortunately, I cannot describe the hardware for others to reproduce the issue as it is a proprietary implementation. [ 82.958261] Unable to handle kernel NULL pointer dereference at virtual address 00000000000000a4 [ 82.966891] Mem abort info: [ 82.969663] ESR = 0x96000006 [ 82.972703] Exception class = DABT (current EL), IL = 32 bits [ 82.978603] SET = 0, FnV = 0 [ 82.981642] EA = 0, S1PTW = 0 [ 82.984765] Data abort info: [ 82.987631] ISV = 0, ISS = 0x00000006 [ 82.991449] CM = 0, WnR = 0 [ 82.994409] user pgtable: 4k pages, 39-bit VAs, pgdp = 00000000c6210ccc [ 83.000999] [00000000000000a4] pgd=0000000053aa5003, pud=0000000053aa5003, pmd=0000000000000000 [ 83.009685] Internal error: Oops: 96000006 [#1] PREEMPT SMP [ 83.026433] Process irq/62-dwc3 (pid: 303, stack limit = 0x000000003985154c) [ 83.033470] CPU: 0 PID: 303 Comm: irq/62-dwc3 Not tainted 4.19.124 #1 [ 83.044836] pstate: 60000085 (nZCv daIf -PAN -UAO) [ 83.049628] pc : dwc3_ep0_handle_feature+0x414/0x43c [ 83.054558] lr : dwc3_ep0_interrupt+0x3b4/0xc94 ... [ 83.141788] Call trace: [ 83.144227] dwc3_ep0_handle_feature+0x414/0x43c [ 83.148823] dwc3_ep0_interrupt+0x3b4/0xc94 [ 83.181546] ---[ end trace aac6b5267d84c32f ]---
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 analysisThe code follows a pointer that is null, crashing the process. An attacker who can reliably trigger it turns the crash into a denial of service. The fix is checking for null before use and handling the failure path gracefully.
General guidance for the null pointer dereference 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
< 4.4.273>= 4.5, < 4.9.273>= 4.10, < 4.14.237>= 4.15, < 4.19.195>= 4.20, < 5.4.126>= 5.5, < 5.10.44>= 5.11, < 5.12.11= 5.13CVSS 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
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 · scoped4.4.2734.9.2734.14.237
Upgrade to Linux kernel >= 4.19.195 (or >= 4.14.237, >= 4.9.273, or >= 4.4.273 depending on your branch); recommended: upgrade to 5.4 LTS or later for long-term support
- Identify the current running kernel version using `uname -r`
- Check if the current version is affected (< 4.4.273, >= 4.5 and < 4.9.273, >= 4.10 and < 4.14.237, or >= 4.15 and < 4.19.195)
- Obtain a kernel update from your distribution's package repository (e.g., `apt-get update && apt-get upgrade`, `yum update kernel`, or `dnf upgrade`)
- Alternatively, download and install a mainline kernel from https://kernel.org/ - recommended versions >= 4.19.195, or better yet >= 5.4 LTS or later
- Reboot the system to load the updated kernel
- Verify the fix is applied by checking the kernel version and confirming `dwc3_wIndex_to_dep` includes endpoint validation
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-47269 — 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 sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-47269 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data