CVE-2021-47429: linux kernel vulnerability

What is known

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: powerpc/64s: Fix unrecoverable MCE calling async handler from NMI The machine check handler is not considered NMI on 64s. The early handler is the true NMI handler, and then it schedules the machine_check_exception handler to run when interrupts are enabled. This works fine except the case of an unrecoverable MCE, where the true NMI is taken when MSR[RI] is clear, it can not recover, so it calls machine_check_exception directly so something might be done about it. Calling an async handler from NMI context can result in irq state and other things getting corrupted. This can also trigger the BUG at arch/powerpc/include/asm/interrupt.h:168 BUG_ON(!arch_irq_disabled_regs(regs) && !(regs->msr & MSR_EE)); Fix this by making an _async version of the handler which is called in the normal case, and a NMI version that is called for unrecoverable interrupts.

Business impact

Successful exploitation of CVE-2021-47429, a medium vulnerability (CVSS 5.5) 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