Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2025-21875

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-03-27

Fix available

A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.10.235 / 5.15.179 or later.

See remediation →

57/100

Remediation priority · Elevated

Zero-click Patch available

Official description

NVD · unedited

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mptcp: always handle address removal under msk socket lock Syzkaller reported a lockdep splat in the PM control path: WARNING: CPU: 0 PID: 6693 at ./include/net/sock.h:1711 sock_owned_by_me include/net/sock.h:1711 [inline] WARNING: CPU: 0 PID: 6693 at ./include/net/sock.h:1711 msk_owned_by_me net/mptcp/protocol.h:363 [inline] WARNING: CPU: 0 PID: 6693 at ./include/net/sock.h:1711 mptcp_pm_nl_addr_send_ack+0x57c/0x610 net/mptcp/pm_netlink.c:788 Modules linked in: CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 6693 Comm: syz.0.205 Not tainted 6.14.0-rc2-syzkaller-00303-gad1b832bf1cf #0 Hardware name: Google Compute Engine/Google Compute Engine, BIOS Google 12/27/2024 RIP: 0010:sock_owned_by_me include/net/sock.h:1711 [inline] RIP: 0010:msk_owned_by_me net/mptcp/protocol.h:363 [inline] RIP: 0010:mptcp_pm_nl_addr_send_ack+0x57c/0x610 net/mptcp/pm_netlink.c:788 Code: 5b 41 5c 41 5d 41 5e 41 5f 5d c3 cc cc cc cc e8 ca 7b d3 f5 eb b9 e8 c3 7b d3 f5 90 0f 0b 90 e9 dd fb ff ff e8 b5 7b d3 f5 90 <0f> 0b 90 e9 3e fb ff ff 44 89 f1 80 e1 07 38 c1 0f 8c eb fb ff ff RSP: 0000:ffffc900034f6f60 EFLAGS: 00010283 RAX: ffffffff8bee3c2b RBX: 0000000000000001 RCX: 0000000000080000 RDX: ffffc90004d42000 RSI: 000000000000a407 RDI: 000000000000a408 RBP: ffffc900034f7030 R08: ffffffff8bee37f6 R09: 0100000000000000 R10: dffffc0000000000 R11: ffffed100bcc62e4 R12: ffff88805e6316e0 R13: ffff88805e630c00 R14: dffffc0000000000 R15: ffff88805e630c00 FS: 00007f7e9a7e96c0(0000) GS:ffff8880b8600000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000 CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033 CR2: 0000001b2fd18ff8 CR3: 0000000032c24000 CR4: 00000000003526f0 DR0: 0000000000000000 DR1: 0000000000000000 DR2: 0000000000000000 DR3: 0000000000000000 DR6: 00000000fffe0ff0 DR7: 0000000000000400 Call Trace: <TASK> mptcp_pm_remove_addr+0x103/0x1d0 net/mptcp/pm.c:59 mptcp_pm_remove_anno_addr+0x1f4/0x2f0 net/mptcp/pm_netlink.c:1486 mptcp_nl_remove_subflow_and_signal_addr net/mptcp/pm_netlink.c:1518 [inline] mptcp_pm_nl_del_addr_doit+0x118d/0x1af0 net/mptcp/pm_netlink.c:1629 genl_family_rcv_msg_doit net/netlink/genetlink.c:1115 [inline] genl_family_rcv_msg net/netlink/genetlink.c:1195 [inline] genl_rcv_msg+0xb1f/0xec0 net/netlink/genetlink.c:1210 netlink_rcv_skb+0x206/0x480 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:2543 genl_rcv+0x28/0x40 net/netlink/genetlink.c:1219 netlink_unicast_kernel net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1322 [inline] netlink_unicast+0x7f6/0x990 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1348 netlink_sendmsg+0x8de/0xcb0 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1892 sock_sendmsg_nosec net/socket.c:718 [inline] __sock_sendmsg+0x221/0x270 net/socket.c:733 ____sys_sendmsg+0x53a/0x860 net/socket.c:2573 ___sys_sendmsg net/socket.c:2627 [inline] __sys_sendmsg+0x269/0x350 net/socket.c:2659 do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/common.c:52 [inline] do_syscall_64+0xf3/0x230 arch/x86/entry/common.c:83 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f RIP: 0033:0x7f7e9998cde9 Code: ff ff c3 66 2e 0f 1f 84 00 00 00 00 00 0f 1f 40 00 48 89 f8 48 89 f7 48 89 d6 48 89 ca 4d 89 c2 4d 89 c8 4c 8b 4c 24 08 0f 05 <48> 3d 01 f0 ff ff 73 01 c3 48 c7 c1 a8 ff ff ff f7 d8 64 89 01 48 RSP: 002b:00007f7e9a7e9038 EFLAGS: 00000246 ORIG_RAX: 000000000000002e RAX: ffffffffffffffda RBX: 00007f7e99ba5fa0 RCX: 00007f7e9998cde9 RDX: 000000002000c094 RSI: 0000400000000000 RDI: 0000000000000007 RBP: 00007f7e99a0e2a0 R08: 0000000000000000 R09: 0000000000000000 R10: 0000000000000000 R11: 0000000000000246 R12: 0000000000000000 R13: 0000000000000000 R14: 00007f7e99ba5fa0 R15: 00007fff49231088 Indeed the PM can try to send a RM_ADDR over a msk without acquiring first the msk socket lock. The bugged code-path comes from an early optimization: when there are no subflows, the PM should (usually) not send RM_ADDR notifications. The above statement is incorrect, as without locks another process could concur ---truncated---

Technical summary

dbcve analysis

A detailed technical summary for this CVE is being prepared.

Affected products & versions

NVD · CPE data

Linux KernelOperating system

Affected:>= 5.10, < 5.10.235>= 5.11, < 5.15.179>= 5.16, < 6.1.130>= 6.2, < 6.6.81>= 6.7, < 6.12.18>= 6.13, < 6.13.6= 6.14

CVSS breakdown

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

dbcve · scoped

Upgrade available Upgrade to 5.10.235 / 5.15.179 / 6.1.130 or later

Fixed in 5.10.2355.15.1796.1.130

Vendor patch git.kernel.org →

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to the first fixed version in your kernel branch: 5.10.235, 5.15.179, 6.1.130, or 6.6.81 (or latest stable 6.7+ if on 6.7+)

1. Identify the currently running Linux kernel version using 'uname -r' or 'cat /proc/version'
2. Determine which version branch you are running (e.g., 5.10.x, 5.15.x, 6.1.x, 6.6.x)
3. For kernels 5.10.x: upgrade to version 5.10.235 or later
4. For kernels 5.11-5.15.x: upgrade to version 5.15.179 or later
5. For kernels 5.16-6.1.x: upgrade to version 6.1.130 or later
6. For kernels 6.2-6.6.x: upgrade to version 6.6.81 or later
7. For kernels 6.7+: upgrade to the latest stable release (6.7.13 or later recommended)
8. Reboot the system to load the fixed kernel

Caveat Kernel upgrades may require system reboot and could have compatibility implications with custom modules or specific hardware drivers; test in non-production environment first

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 $1,600. Get the upgrade done

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References

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-21875 in production — separate from our analysis above.

Notes0 Guidelines

Know something about CVE-2025-21875?

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

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What this is

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.

What belongs here

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

At a glance

A fix existsUpgrade to 5.10.235 / 5.15.179 or later

Severity 5.5 Medium

Exploit likelihood EPSS, next 30 days 0.2%

Affects: Linux Kernel

Remediation

Need this fixed?

Get a fix

Estimated effortfrom ~9 hrs

ComplexityModerate

Typical engagementfrom $1,600

What a fix involves

We scope it with you and confirm a fixed quote
A specialist builds a reviewed fix
You deploy it to staging first
Optional re-test once it’s live

We specialise in CVE remediation. Send your environment and we’ll scope CVE-2025-21875 and return a fixed quote.

You’ll deal with our team directly and deploy the reviewed fix to staging first — never straight to production.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Scan for this in your stack

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

Practitioner notes

No notes yet

Official description

Technical summary

Affected products & versions

CVSS breakdown

Remediation

References