CVE-2025-21756

HIGHCVSS 7.8/10EPSS 0.82%

Last modified

CVE-2025-21756 is a high-severity vulnerability rated 7.8/10 on the CVSS scale. In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: vsock: Keep the binding until socket destruction Preserve sockets bindings; this includes both resulting from an explicit bind() and those implicitly bound through autobind during connect(). Prevents socket unbinding during a transport reassignment, which fixes a use-after-free: 1. vsock_create() (refcnt=1) calls vsock_insert_unbound() (refcnt=2) 2. EPSS estimates a 0.82% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days.

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: vsock: Keep the binding until socket destruction Preserve sockets bindings; this includes both resulting from an explicit bind() and those implicitly bound through autobind during connect(). Prevents socket unbinding during a transport reassignment, which fixes a use-after-free: 1. vsock_create() (refcnt=1) calls vsock_insert_unbound() (refcnt=2) 2. transport->release() calls vsock_remove_bound() without checking if sk was bound and moved to bound list (refcnt=1) 3. vsock_bind() assumes sk is in unbound list and before __vsock_insert_bound(vsock_bound_sockets()) calls __vsock_remove_bound() which does: list_del_init(&vsk->bound_table); // nop sock_put(&vsk->sk); // refcnt=0 BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in __vsock_bind+0x62e/0x730 Read of size 4 at addr ffff88816b46a74c by task a.out/2057 dump_stack_lvl+0x68/0x90 print_report+0x174/0x4f6 kasan_report+0xb9/0x190 __vsock_bind+0x62e/0x730 vsock_bind+0x97/0xe0 __sys_bind+0x154/0x1f0 __x64_sys_bind+0x6e/0xb0 do_syscall_64+0x93/0x1b0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e Allocated by task 2057: kasan_save_stack+0x1e/0x40 kasan_save_track+0x10/0x30 __kasan_slab_alloc+0x85/0x90 kmem_cache_alloc_noprof+0x131/0x450 sk_prot_alloc+0x5b/0x220 sk_alloc+0x2c/0x870 __vsock_create.constprop.0+0x2e/0xb60 vsock_create+0xe4/0x420 __sock_create+0x241/0x650 __sys_socket+0xf2/0x1a0 __x64_sys_socket+0x6e/0xb0 do_syscall_64+0x93/0x1b0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e Freed by task 2057: kasan_save_stack+0x1e/0x40 kasan_save_track+0x10/0x30 kasan_save_free_info+0x37/0x60 __kasan_slab_free+0x4b/0x70 kmem_cache_free+0x1a1/0x590 __sk_destruct+0x388/0x5a0 __vsock_bind+0x5e1/0x730 vsock_bind+0x97/0xe0 __sys_bind+0x154/0x1f0 __x64_sys_bind+0x6e/0xb0 do_syscall_64+0x93/0x1b0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e refcount_t: addition on 0; use-after-free. WARNING: CPU: 7 PID: 2057 at lib/refcount.c:25 refcount_warn_saturate+0xce/0x150 RIP: 0010:refcount_warn_saturate+0xce/0x150 __vsock_bind+0x66d/0x730 vsock_bind+0x97/0xe0 __sys_bind+0x154/0x1f0 __x64_sys_bind+0x6e/0xb0 do_syscall_64+0x93/0x1b0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e refcount_t: underflow; use-after-free. WARNING: CPU: 7 PID: 2057 at lib/refcount.c:28 refcount_warn_saturate+0xee/0x150 RIP: 0010:refcount_warn_saturate+0xee/0x150 vsock_remove_bound+0x187/0x1e0 __vsock_release+0x383/0x4a0 vsock_release+0x90/0x120 __sock_release+0xa3/0x250 sock_close+0x14/0x20 __fput+0x359/0xa80 task_work_run+0x107/0x1d0 do_exit+0x847/0x2560 do_group_exit+0xb8/0x250 __x64_sys_exit_group+0x3a/0x50 x64_sys_call+0xfec/0x14f0 do_syscall_64+0x93/0x1b0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e

Metrics

CVSS 3.1
7.8/10

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

EPSS Probability
0.82%

52.7th percentile

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days. Learn more

Weakness Enumeration

Affected Software

VendorProductVersions
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 5.5, < 5.10.235
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 5.11, < 5.15.179
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 5.16, < 6.1.131
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 6.2, < 6.6.79
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 6.7, < 6.12.16
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 6.13, < 6.13.4

References

Timeline

Published
Last Modified
Status
Modified

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2025-21756?
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: vsock: Keep the binding until socket destruction Preserve sockets bindings; this includes both resulting from an explicit bind() and those implicitly bound through autobind during connect(). Prevents socket unbinding during a transport reassignment, which fixes a use-after-free: 1. vsock_create() (refcnt=1) calls vsock_insert_unbound() (refcnt=2) 2. transport->release() calls vsock_remove_bound() without checking if sk was bound and moved to bound list (refcnt=1) 3. vsock_bind() assumes sk is in unbound list and before __vsock_insert_bound(vsock_bound_sockets()) calls __vsock_remove_bound() which does: list_del_init(&vsk->bound_table); // nop sock_put(&vsk->sk); // refcnt=0 BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in __vsock_bind+0x62e/0x730 Read of size 4 at addr ffff88816b46a74c by task a.out/2057 dump_stack_lvl+0x68/0x90 print_report+0x174/0x4f6 kasan_report+0xb9/0x190 __vsock_bind+0x62e/0x730 vsock_bind+0x97/0xe0 __sys_bind+0x154/0x1f0 __x64_sys_bind+0x6e/0xb0 do_syscall_64+0x93/0x1b0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e Allocated by task 2057: kasan_save_stack+0x1e/0x40 kasan_save_track+0x10/0x30 __kasan_slab_alloc+0x85/0x90 kmem_cache_alloc_noprof+0x131/0x450 sk_prot_alloc+0x5b/0x220 sk_alloc+0x2c/0x870 __vsock_create.constprop.0+0x2e/0xb60 vsock_create+0xe4/0x420 __sock_create+0x241/0x650 __sys_socket+0xf2/0x1a0 __x64_sys_socket+0x6e/0xb0 do_syscall_64+0x93/0x1b0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e Freed by task 2057: kasan_save_stack+0x1e/0x40 kasan_save_track+0x10/0x30 kasan_save_free_info+0x37/0x60 __kasan_slab_free+0x4b/0x70 kmem_cache_free+0x1a1/0x590 __sk_destruct+0x388/0x5a0 __vsock_bind+0x5e1/0x730 vsock_bind+0x97/0xe0 __sys_bind+0x154/0x1f0 __x64_sys_bind+0x6e/0xb0 do_syscall_64+0x93/0x1b0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e refcount_t: addition on 0; use-after-free. WARNING: CPU: 7 PID: 2057 at lib/refcount.c:25 refcount_warn_saturate+0xce/0x150 RIP: 0010:refcount_warn_saturate+0xce/0x150 __vsock_bind+0x66d/0x730 vsock_bind+0x97/0xe0 __sys_bind+0x154/0x1f0 __x64_sys_bind+0x6e/0xb0 do_syscall_64+0x93/0x1b0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e refcount_t: underflow; use-after-free. WARNING: CPU: 7 PID: 2057 at lib/refcount.c:28 refcount_warn_saturate+0xee/0x150 RIP: 0010:refcount_warn_saturate+0xee/0x150 vsock_remove_bound+0x187/0x1e0 __vsock_release+0x383/0x4a0 vsock_release+0x90/0x120 __sock_release+0xa3/0x250 sock_close+0x14/0x20 __fput+0x359/0xa80 task_work_run+0x107/0x1d0 do_exit+0x847/0x2560 do_group_exit+0xb8/0x250 __x64_sys_exit_group+0x3a/0x50 x64_sys_call+0xfec/0x14f0 do_syscall_64+0x93/0x1b0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e
How severe is CVE-2025-21756?
CVE-2025-21756 has a CVSS score of 7.8/10 (HIGH severity). The EPSS model estimates a 0.82% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
How do I fix CVE-2025-21756?
Check the vendor references and advisories linked above for patched versions and mitigation guidance. You can also run a Strix scan to test if your systems are affected.

Are you affected by CVE-2025-21756?

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Source: NVD / NIST