Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2025-21961

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-04-01
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.12.20 / 6.13.8 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: eth: bnxt: fix truesize for mb-xdp-pass case When mb-xdp is set and return is XDP_PASS, packet is converted from xdp_buff to sk_buff with xdp_update_skb_shared_info() in bnxt_xdp_build_skb(). bnxt_xdp_build_skb() passes incorrect truesize argument to xdp_update_skb_shared_info(). The truesize is calculated as BNXT_RX_PAGE_SIZE * sinfo->nr_frags but the skb_shared_info was wiped by napi_build_skb() before. So it stores sinfo->nr_frags before bnxt_xdp_build_skb() and use it instead of getting skb_shared_info from xdp_get_shared_info_from_buff(). Splat looks like: ------------[ cut here ]------------ WARNING: CPU: 2 PID: 0 at net/core/skbuff.c:6072 skb_try_coalesce+0x504/0x590 Modules linked in: xt_nat xt_tcpudp veth af_packet xt_conntrack nft_chain_nat xt_MASQUERADE nf_conntrack_netlink xfrm_user xt_addrtype nft_coms CPU: 2 UID: 0 PID: 0 Comm: swapper/2 Not tainted 6.14.0-rc2+ #3 RIP: 0010:skb_try_coalesce+0x504/0x590 Code: 4b fd ff ff 49 8b 34 24 40 80 e6 40 0f 84 3d fd ff ff 49 8b 74 24 48 40 f6 c6 01 0f 84 2e fd ff ff 48 8d 4e ff e9 25 fd ff ff <0f> 0b e99 RSP: 0018:ffffb62c4120caa8 EFLAGS: 00010287 RAX: 0000000000000003 RBX: ffffb62c4120cb14 RCX: 0000000000000ec0 RDX: 0000000000001000 RSI: ffffa06e5d7dc000 RDI: 0000000000000003 RBP: ffffa06e5d7ddec0 R08: ffffa06e6120a800 R09: ffffa06e7a119900 R10: 0000000000002310 R11: ffffa06e5d7dcec0 R12: ffffe4360575f740 R13: ffffe43600000000 R14: 0000000000000002 R15: 0000000000000002 FS: 0000000000000000(0000) GS:ffffa0755f700000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000 CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033 CR2: 00007f147b76b0f8 CR3: 00000001615d4000 CR4: 00000000007506f0 PKRU: 55555554 Call Trace: <IRQ> ? __warn+0x84/0x130 ? skb_try_coalesce+0x504/0x590 ? report_bug+0x18a/0x1a0 ? handle_bug+0x53/0x90 ? exc_invalid_op+0x14/0x70 ? asm_exc_invalid_op+0x16/0x20 ? skb_try_coalesce+0x504/0x590 inet_frag_reasm_finish+0x11f/0x2e0 ip_defrag+0x37a/0x900 ip_local_deliver+0x51/0x120 ip_sublist_rcv_finish+0x64/0x70 ip_sublist_rcv+0x179/0x210 ip_list_rcv+0xf9/0x130 How to reproduce: <Node A> ip link set $interface1 xdp obj xdp_pass.o ip link set $interface1 mtu 9000 up ip a a 10.0.0.1/24 dev $interface1 <Node B> ip link set $interfac2 mtu 9000 up ip a a 10.0.0.2/24 dev $interface2 ping 10.0.0.1 -s 65000 Following ping.py patch adds xdp-mb-pass case. so ping.py is going to be able to reproduce this issue.

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

A detailed technical summary for this CVE is being prepared.

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:>= 5.19, < 6.12.20>= 6.13, < 6.13.8= 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 6.12.20 / 6.13.8 or later
Fixed in 6.12.206.13.8
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Linux kernel >= 6.12.20, >= 6.13.8, or >= 6.14.1 (depending on branch)

  1. Identify the current kernel version using 'uname -r'
  2. Check if the system is running an affected kernel version: >= 5.19, < 6.12.20; >= 6.13, < 6.13.8; or = 6.14
  3. Consult your Linux distribution's kernel availability schedule for patched kernels
  4. Upgrade the Linux kernel to version 6.12.20 or later, 6.13.8 or later, or 6.14.1 or later
  5. Reboot the system to load the patched kernel
  6. Verify the fix is applied by checking 'uname -r' shows a patched version and checking that the bnxt driver no longer produces the skb_try_coalesce warning
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require rebooting services; ensure compatibility with system hardware and software stack before upgrading

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

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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

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Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-21961 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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