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Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2025-21891

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-03-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.1.130 / 6.6.81 or later.
See remediation →
57/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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: ipvlan: ensure network headers are in skb linear part syzbot found that ipvlan_process_v6_outbound() was assuming the IPv6 network header isis present in skb->head [1] Add the needed pskb_network_may_pull() calls for both IPv4 and IPv6 handlers. [1] BUG: KMSAN: uninit-value in __ipv6_addr_type+0xa2/0x490 net/ipv6/addrconf_core.c:47 __ipv6_addr_type+0xa2/0x490 net/ipv6/addrconf_core.c:47 ipv6_addr_type include/net/ipv6.h:555 [inline] ip6_route_output_flags_noref net/ipv6/route.c:2616 [inline] ip6_route_output_flags+0x51/0x720 net/ipv6/route.c:2651 ip6_route_output include/net/ip6_route.h:93 [inline] ipvlan_route_v6_outbound+0x24e/0x520 drivers/net/ipvlan/ipvlan_core.c:476 ipvlan_process_v6_outbound drivers/net/ipvlan/ipvlan_core.c:491 [inline] ipvlan_process_outbound drivers/net/ipvlan/ipvlan_core.c:541 [inline] ipvlan_xmit_mode_l3 drivers/net/ipvlan/ipvlan_core.c:605 [inline] ipvlan_queue_xmit+0xd72/0x1780 drivers/net/ipvlan/ipvlan_core.c:671 ipvlan_start_xmit+0x5b/0x210 drivers/net/ipvlan/ipvlan_main.c:223 __netdev_start_xmit include/linux/netdevice.h:5150 [inline] netdev_start_xmit include/linux/netdevice.h:5159 [inline] xmit_one net/core/dev.c:3735 [inline] dev_hard_start_xmit+0x247/0xa20 net/core/dev.c:3751 sch_direct_xmit+0x399/0xd40 net/sched/sch_generic.c:343 qdisc_restart net/sched/sch_generic.c:408 [inline] __qdisc_run+0x14da/0x35d0 net/sched/sch_generic.c:416 qdisc_run+0x141/0x4d0 include/net/pkt_sched.h:127 net_tx_action+0x78b/0x940 net/core/dev.c:5484 handle_softirqs+0x1a0/0x7c0 kernel/softirq.c:561 __do_softirq+0x14/0x1a kernel/softirq.c:595 do_softirq+0x9a/0x100 kernel/softirq.c:462 __local_bh_enable_ip+0x9f/0xb0 kernel/softirq.c:389 local_bh_enable include/linux/bottom_half.h:33 [inline] rcu_read_unlock_bh include/linux/rcupdate.h:919 [inline] __dev_queue_xmit+0x2758/0x57d0 net/core/dev.c:4611 dev_queue_xmit include/linux/netdevice.h:3311 [inline] packet_xmit+0x9c/0x6c0 net/packet/af_packet.c:276 packet_snd net/packet/af_packet.c:3132 [inline] packet_sendmsg+0x93e0/0xa7e0 net/packet/af_packet.c:3164 sock_sendmsg_nosec net/socket.c:718 [inline]

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-908

Memory or a resource is used before it has been initialised, so its contents are whatever happened to be there — sometimes leaking earlier data, sometimes values an attacker can influence. Behaviour becomes unpredictable and occasionally exploitable. Remediation is initialising every resource before use and ensuring initialisation happens on all code paths.

General guidance for the use of uninitialized resource 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:>= 3.19, < 6.1.130>= 6.2, < 6.6.81>= 6.7, < 6.12.18>= 6.13, < 6.13.6= 6.14

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
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 · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 6.1.130 / 6.6.81 / 6.12.18 or later
Fixed in 6.1.1306.6.816.12.18
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to kernel >= 6.1.130 (for 6.1.x branch), >= 6.6.81 (for 6.2-6.6.x), >= 6.12.18 (for 6.7-6.12.x), or >= 6.13.6 (for 6.13.x)

  1. Identify your current Linux kernel version using 'uname -r'
  2. Determine which version branch you are on (e.g., 6.1.x, 6.6.x, 6.7.x, 6.12.x, or 6.13.x)
  3. Upgrade to a kernel version at or above the fixed release for your branch: 6.1.130, 6.6.81, 6.12.18, or 6.13.6
  4. Use your distribution's package manager to install the updated kernel (e.g., 'apt-get update && apt-get install linux-image-generic' for Debian/Ubuntu, or 'yum update kernel' for RHEL/CentOS)
  5. Reboot the system to load the new kernel
  6. Verify the new kernel version is running with 'uname -r'
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require system reboot and could have driver compatibility implications; test in staging if possible

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 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-2025-21891 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
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