CVE-2025-21703
HIGHCVSS Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Lifecycle Timeline
3Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netem: Update sch->q.qlen before qdisc_tree_reduce_backlog() qdisc_tree_reduce_backlog() notifies parent qdisc only if child qdisc becomes empty, therefore we need to reduce the backlog of the child qdisc before calling it. Otherwise it would miss the opportunity to call cops->qlen_notify(), in the case of DRR, it resulted in UAF since DRR uses ->qlen_notify() to maintain its active list.
Analysis
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netem: Update sch->q.qlen before qdisc_tree_reduce_backlog() qdisc_tree_reduce_backlog() notifies parent qdisc only if child qdisc. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Use After Free vulnerability could allow attackers to access freed memory to execute arbitrary code or crash the application.
Technical Context
This vulnerability is classified as Use After Free (CWE-416), which allows attackers to access freed memory to execute arbitrary code or crash the application. In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netem: Update sch->q.qlen before qdisc_tree_reduce_backlog() qdisc_tree_reduce_backlog() notifies parent qdisc only if child qdisc becomes empty, therefore we need to reduce the backlog of the child qdisc before calling it. Otherwise it would miss the opportunity to call cops->qlen_notify(), in the case of DRR, it resulted in UAF since DRR uses ->qlen_notify() to maintain its active list. Affected products include: Linux Linux Kernel.
Affected Products
Linux Linux Kernel.
Remediation
A vendor patch is available. Apply the latest security update as soon as possible. Use smart pointers or garbage-collected languages. Set pointers to NULL after freeing. Enable memory sanitizers.
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External POC / Exploit Code
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