CVE-2021-47118

pid: take a reference when initializing `cad_pid`

HIGH
7.8
CVSS Score
Published: March 15, 2024 at 08:14 PM UTC
Updated: June 17, 2026 at 04:16 AM UTC
1 product affected across 1 vendorLinux Kernel

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Severity
HIGH7.8
Exploit prediction
EPSS 0.2%
SSVC
No known exploit

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: pid: take a reference when initializing `cad_pid` During boot, kernel_init_freeable() initializes `cad_pid` to the init task's struct pid. Later on, we may change `cad_pid` via a sysctl, and when this happens proc_do_cad_pid() will increment the refcount on the new pid via get_pid(), and will decrement the refcount on the old pid via put_pid(). As we never called get_pid() when we initialized `cad_pid`, we decrement a reference we never incremented, can therefore free the init task's struct pid early. As there can be dangling references to the struct pid, we can later encounter a use-after-free (e.g. when delivering signals). This was spotted when fuzzing v5.13-rc3 with Syzkaller, but seems to have been around since the conversion of `cad_pid` to struct pid in commit 9ec52099e4b8 ("[PATCH] replace cad_pid by a struct pid") from the pre-KASAN stone age of v2.6.19. Fix this by getting a reference to the init task's struct pid when we assign it to `cad_pid`. Full KASAN splat below. ================================================================== BUG: KASAN: use-after-free in ns_of_pid include/linux/pid.h:153 [inline] BUG: KASAN: use-after-free in task_active_pid_ns+0xc0/0xc8 kernel/pid.c:509 Read of size 4 at addr ffff23794dda0004 by task syz-executor.0/273 CPU: 1 PID: 273 Comm: syz-executor.0 Not tainted 5.12.0-00001-g9aef892b2d15 #1 Hardware name: linux,dummy-virt (DT) Call trace: ns_of_pid include/linux/pid.h:153 [inline] task_active_pid_ns+0xc0/0xc8 kernel/pid.c:509 do_notify_parent+0x308/0xe60 kernel/signal.c:1950 exit_notify kernel/exit.c:682 [inline] do_exit+0x2334/0x2bd0 kernel/exit.c:845 do_group_exit+0x108/0x2c8 kernel/exit.c:922 get_signal+0x4e4/0x2a88 kernel/signal.c:2781 do_signal arch/arm64/kernel/signal.c:882 [inline] do_notify_resume+0x300/0x970 arch/arm64/kernel/signal.c:936 work_pending+0xc/0x2dc Allocated by task 0: slab_post_alloc_hook+0x50/0x5c0 mm/slab.h:516 slab_alloc_node mm/slub.c:2907 [inline] slab_alloc mm/slub.c:2915 [inline] kmem_cache_alloc+0x1f4/0x4c0 mm/slub.c:2920 alloc_pid+0xdc/0xc00 kernel/pid.c:180 copy_process+0x2794/0x5e18 kernel/fork.c:2129 kernel_clone+0x194/0x13c8 kernel/fork.c:2500 kernel_thread+0xd4/0x110 kernel/fork.c:2552 rest_init+0x44/0x4a0 init/main.c:687 arch_call_rest_init+0x1c/0x28 start_kernel+0x520/0x554 init/main.c:1064 0x0 Freed by task 270: slab_free_hook mm/slub.c:1562 [inline] slab_free_freelist_hook+0x98/0x260 mm/slub.c:1600 slab_free mm/slub.c:3161 [inline] kmem_cache_free+0x224/0x8e0 mm/slub.c:3177 put_pid.part.4+0xe0/0x1a8 kernel/pid.c:114 put_pid+0x30/0x48 kernel/pid.c:109 proc_do_cad_pid+0x190/0x1b0 kernel/sysctl.c:1401 proc_sys_call_handler+0x338/0x4b0 fs/proc/proc_sysctl.c:591 proc_sys_write+0x34/0x48 fs/proc/proc_sysctl.c:617 call_write_iter include/linux/fs.h:1977 [inline] new_sync_write+0x3ac/0x510 fs/read_write.c:518 vfs_write fs/read_write.c:605 [inline] vfs_write+0x9c4/0x1018 fs/read_write.c:585 ksys_write+0x124/0x240 fs/read_write.c:658 __do_sys_write fs/read_write.c:670 [inline] __se_sys_write fs/read_write.c:667 [inline] __arm64_sys_write+0x78/0xb0 fs/read_write.c:667 __invoke_syscall arch/arm64/kernel/syscall.c:37 [inline] invoke_syscall arch/arm64/kernel/syscall.c:49 [inline] el0_svc_common.constprop.1+0x16c/0x388 arch/arm64/kernel/syscall.c:129 do_el0_svc+0xf8/0x150 arch/arm64/kernel/syscall.c:168 el0_svc+0x28/0x38 arch/arm64/kernel/entry-common.c:416 el0_sync_handler+0x134/0x180 arch/arm64/kernel/entry-common.c:432 el0_sync+0x154/0x180 arch/arm64/kernel/entry.S:701 The buggy address belongs to the object at ffff23794dda0000 which belongs to the cache pid of size 224 The buggy address is located 4 bytes inside of 224-byte region [ff ---truncated---

Affected

Our own answer: ranges merged, affected separated from platform-only, with confidence and review flags.

2.6.19 ≤ v < 4.14.2362.6.19 ≤ v < 4.19.1942.6.19 ≤ v < 4.4.2722.6.19 ≤ v < 4.9.2722.6.19 ≤ v < 5.10.432.6.19 ≤ v < 5.12.102.6.19 ≤ v < 5.132.6.19 ≤ v < 5.4.1254.10 ≤ v < 4.14.2364.15 ≤ v < 4.19.1944.20 ≤ v < 5.4.1254.5 ≤ v < 4.9.2725.11 ≤ v < 5.12.105.5 ≤ v < 5.10.435.13 rc15.13 rc25.13 rc35.13 rc49ec52099e4b8678a60e9f93e41ad87885d64f3e6
Vendor states this is fixed in 0711f0d7050b9e07c44bc159bbc64ac0a1022c7f (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 2cd6eedfa6344f5ef5c3dac3aee57a39b5b46dff (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 4dbd8808a591b49b717862e6e0081bcf14a87788 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 7178be006d495ffb741c329012da289b62dddfe6 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 764c2e892d1fe895392aff62fb353fdce43bb529 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in b8ff869f20152fbe66b6c2e2715d26a2f9897cca (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in d106f05432e60f9f62d456ef017687f5c73cb414 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in f86c80515a8a3703e0ca2e56deb50fc2879c5ea4 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 2.6.19 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 4.14.236 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 4.19.194 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 4.4.272 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 4.9.272 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 5.10.43 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 5.12.10 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 5.13 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 5.4.125 (unaffected)

References (8)

Patch
Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0711f0d7050b9e07c44bc159bbc64ac0a1022c7f
Patch
Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2cd6eedfa6344f5ef5c3dac3aee57a39b5b46dff
Patch
Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4dbd8808a591b49b717862e6e0081bcf14a87788
Patch
Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7178be006d495ffb741c329012da289b62dddfe6
Patch
Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/764c2e892d1fe895392aff62fb353fdce43bb529
Patch
Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b8ff869f20152fbe66b6c2e2715d26a2f9897cca
Patch
Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d106f05432e60f9f62d456ef017687f5c73cb414
Patch
Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f86c80515a8a3703e0ca2e56deb50fc2879c5ea4

SSVC — Action Prioritization

SSVCNo known exploitNot automatablePartial impact

SSVC signals action urgency (what to patch first), separate from CVSS which measures severity.

CVSS

Attack Vector
LOCAL
Complexity
LOW
Privileges
LOW
User Interaction
NONE
Scope
UNCHANGED
Confidentiality
HIGH
Integrity
HIGH
Availability
HIGH
Vector?

Quick Info

StatusANALYZED
CWE
CWE-416

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