CVE-2021-47069: linux kernel vulnerability

What is known

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ipc/mqueue, msg, sem: avoid relying on a stack reference past its expiry do_mq_timedreceive calls wq_sleep with a stack local address. The sender (do_mq_timedsend) uses this address to later call pipelined_send. This leads to a very hard to trigger race where a do_mq_timedreceive call might return and leave do_mq_timedsend to rely on an invalid address, causing the following crash: RIP: 0010:wake_q_add_safe+0x13/0x60 Call Trace: __x64_sys_mq_timedsend+0x2a9/0x490 do_syscall_64+0x80/0x680 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x44/0xa9 RIP: 0033:0x7f5928e40343 The race occurs as: 1. do_mq_timedreceive calls wq_sleep with the address of `struct ext_wait_queue` on function stack (aliased as `ewq_addr` here) - it holds a valid `struct ext_wait_queue *` as long as the stack has not been overwritten. 2. `ewq_addr` gets added to info->e_wait_q[RECV].list in wq_add, and do_mq_timedsend receives it via wq_get_first_waiter(info, RECV) to call __pipelined_op. 3. Sender calls __pipelined_op::smp_store_release(&this->state, STATE_READY). Here is where the race window begins. (`this` is `ewq_addr`.) 4. If the receiver wakes up now in do_mq_timedreceive::wq_sleep, it will see `state == STATE_READY` and break. 5. do_mq_timedreceive returns, and `ewq_addr` is no longer guaranteed to be a `struct ext_wait_queue *` since it was on do_mq_timedreceive's stack. (Although the address may not get overwritten until another function happens to touch it, which means it can persist around for an indefinite time.) 6. do_mq_timedsend::__pipelined_op() still believes `ewq_addr` is a `struct ext_wait_queue *`, and uses it to find a task_struct to pass to the wake_q_add_safe call. In the lucky case where nothing has overwritten `ewq_addr` yet, `ewq_addr->task` is the right task_struct. In the unlucky case, __pipelined_op::wake_q_add_safe gets handed a bogus address as the receiver's task_struct causing the crash. do_mq_timedsend::__pipelined_op() should not dereference `this` after setting STATE_READY, as the receiver counterpart is now free to return. Change __pipelined_op to call wake_q_add_safe on the receiver's task_struct returned by get_task_struct, instead of dereferencing `this` which sits on the receiver's stack. As Manfred pointed out, the race potentially also exists in ipc/msg.c::expunge_all and ipc/sem.c::wake_up_sem_queue_prepare. Fix those in the same way.

Business impact

Successful exploitation of CVE-2021-47069, a high vulnerability (CVSS 7.8) affecting linux kernel, may affect the confidentiality, integrity or availability of the vulnerable environment. The exact impact depends on the installed version, exposed interfaces and deployment configuration.

Recommended administrator action

Confirm whether linux kernel is present and compare installed versions with the vendor advisory and NVD record. Apply the vendor patch or documented mitigation; until remediation is complete, reduce exposure of affected interfaces, review relevant logs and monitor for indicators of exploitation. DataHouse can support version verification, managed patching, network exposure reduction, log review and backup validation for dedicated, cloud and colocated environments.

Sources

• NVD
• Reference
• Reference
• Reference