How severe is CVE-2021-47451?

CVE-2021-47451 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.

Is CVE-2021-47451 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (13th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2021-47451?

CVE-2021-47451 primarily affects Linux Linux Kernel. In total, 7 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2021-47451?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.

Does CVE-2021-47451 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?

Yes. CVE-2021-47451 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2021-34456.

When was CVE-2021-47451 published?

CVE-2021-47451 was published on 2024-05-22 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2021-47451

CVE-2021-47451 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux Linux Kernel with a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-908.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 5.5)
EPSS exploit prediction: 0% (13th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
EU (EUVD) id: EUVD-2021-34456
Weakness: CWE-908
Affected product: Linux Linux Kernel
Published: 2024-05-22
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfilter: xt_IDLETIMER: fix panic that occurs when timer_type has garbage value Currently, when the rule related to IDLETIMER is added, idletimer_tg timer structure is initialized by kmalloc on executing idletimer_tg_create function. However, in this process timer->timer_type is not defined to a specific value. Thus, timer->timer_type has garbage value and it occurs kernel panic. So, this commit fixes the panic by initializing timer->timer_type using kzalloc instead of kmalloc. Test commands: # iptables -A OUTPUT -j IDLETIMER --timeout 1 --label test $ cat /sys/class/xt_idletimer/timers/test Killed Splat looks like: BUG: KASAN: user-memory-access in alarm_expires_remaining+0x49/0x70 Read of size 8 at addr 0000002e8c7bc4c8 by task cat/917 CPU: 12 PID: 917 Comm: cat Not tainted 5.14.0+ #3 79940a339f71eb14fc81aee1757a20d5bf13eb0e Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (Q35 + ICH9, 2009), BIOS 1.13.0-1ubuntu1.1 04/01/2014 Call Trace: dump_stack_lvl+0x6e/0x9c kasan_report.cold+0x112/0x117 ? alarm_expires_remaining+0x49/0x70 __asan_load8+0x86/0xb0 alarm_expires_remaining+0x49/0x70 idletimer_tg_show+0xe5/0x19b [xt_IDLETIMER 11219304af9316a21bee5ba9d58f76a6b9bccc6d] dev_attr_show+0x3c/0x60 sysfs_kf_seq_show+0x11d/0x1f0 ? device_remove_bin_file+0x20/0x20 kernfs_seq_show+0xa4/0xb0 seq_read_iter+0x29c/0x750 kernfs_fop_read_iter+0x25a/0x2c0 ? __fsnotify_parent+0x3d1/0x570 ? iov_iter_init+0x70/0x90 new_sync_read+0x2a7/0x3d0 ? __x64_sys_llseek+0x230/0x230 ? rw_verify_area+0x81/0x150 vfs_read+0x17b/0x240 ksys_read+0xd9/0x180 ? vfs_write+0x460/0x460 ? do_syscall_64+0x16/0xc0 ? lockdep_hardirqs_on+0x79/0x120 __x64_sys_read+0x43/0x50 do_syscall_64+0x3b/0xc0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x44/0xae RIP: 0033:0x7f0cdc819142 Code: c0 e9 c2 fe ff ff 50 48 8d 3d 3a ca 0a 00 e8 f5 19 02 00 0f 1f 44 00 00 f3 0f 1e fa 64 8b 04 25 18 00 00 00 85 c0 75 10 0f 05 <48> 3d 00 f0 ff ff 77 56 c3 0f 1f 44 00 00 48 83 ec 28 48 89 54 24 RSP: 002b:00007fff28eee5b8 EFLAGS: 00000246 ORIG_RAX: 0000000000000000 RAX: ffffffffffffffda RBX: 0000000000020000 RCX: 00007f0cdc819142 RDX: 0000000000020000 RSI: 00007f0cdc032000 RDI: 0000000000000003 RBP: 00007f0cdc032000 R08: 00007f0cdc031010 R09: 0000000000000000 R10: 0000000000000022 R11: 0000000000000246 R12: 00005607e9ee31f0 R13: 0000000000000003 R14: 0000000000020000 R15: 0000000000020000

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2021-47451?: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfilter: xt_IDLETIMER: fix panic that occurs when timer_type has garbage value Currently, when the rule related to IDLETIMER is added, idletimer_tg timer structure is initialized by kmalloc on executing idletimer_tg_create function. However, in this process timer->timer_type is not defined to a specific value. Thus, timer->timer_type has garbage value and it occurs kernel panic. So, this commit fixes the panic by initializing timer->timer_type using kzalloc instead of kmalloc. Test commands: # iptables -A OUTPUT -j IDLETIMER --timeout 1 --label test $ cat /sys/class/xt_idletimer/timers/test Killed Splat looks like: BUG: KASAN: user-memory-access in alarm_expires_remaining+0x49/0x70 Read of size 8 at addr 0000002e8c7bc4c8 by task cat/917 CPU: 12 PID: 917 Comm: cat Not tainted 5.14.0+ #3 79940a339f71eb14fc81aee1757a20d5bf13eb0e Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (Q35 + ICH9, 2009), BIOS 1.13.0-1ubuntu1.1 04/01/2014 Call Trace: dump_stack_lvl+0x6e/0x9c kasan_report.cold+0x112/0x117 ? alarm_expires_remaining+0x49/0x70 __asan_load8+0x86/0xb0 alarm_expires_remaining+0x49/0x70 idletimer_tg_show+0xe5/0x19b [xt_IDLETIMER 11219304af9316a21bee5ba9d58f76a6b9bccc6d] dev_attr_show+0x3c/0x60 sysfs_kf_seq_show+0x11d/0x1f0 ? device_remove_bin_file+0x20/0x20 kernfs_seq_show+0xa4/0xb0 seq_read_iter+0x29c/0x750 kernfs_fop_read_iter+0x25a/0x2c0 ? __fsnotify_parent+0x3d1/0x570 ? iov_iter_init+0x70/0x90 new_sync_read+0x2a7/0x3d0 ? __x64_sys_llseek+0x230/0x230 ? rw_verify_area+0x81/0x150 vfs_read+0x17b/0x240 ksys_read+0xd9/0x180 ? vfs_write+0x460/0x460 ? do_syscall_64+0x16/0xc0 ? lockdep_hardirqs_on+0x79/0x120 __x64_sys_read+0x43/0x50 do_syscall_64+0x3b/0xc0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x44/0xae RIP: 0033:0x7f0cdc819142 Code: c0 e9 c2 fe ff ff 50 48 8d 3d 3a ca 0a 00 e8 f5 19 02 00 0f 1f 44 00 00 f3 0f 1e fa 64 8b 04 25 18 00 00 00 85 c0 75 10 0f 05 <48> 3d 00 f0 ff ff 77 56 c3 0f 1f 44 00 00 48 83 ec 28 48 89 54 24 RSP: 002b:00007fff28eee5b8 EFLAGS: 00000246 ORIG_RAX: 0000000000000000 RAX: ffffffffffffffda RBX: 0000000000020000 RCX: 00007f0cdc819142 RDX: 0000000000020000 RSI: 00007f0cdc032000 RDI: 0000000000000003 RBP: 00007f0cdc032000 R08: 00007f0cdc031010 R09: 0000000000000000 R10: 0000000000000022 R11: 0000000000000246 R12: 00005607e9ee31f0 R13: 0000000000000003 R14: 0000000000020000 R15: 0000000000020000
How severe is CVE-2021-47451?: CVE-2021-47451 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.
Is CVE-2021-47451 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (13th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2021-47451?: CVE-2021-47451 primarily affects Linux Linux Kernel. In total, 7 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2021-47451?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
Does CVE-2021-47451 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?: Yes. CVE-2021-47451 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2021-34456.
When was CVE-2021-47451 published?: CVE-2021-47451 was published on 2024-05-22 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (7)

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc6:*:*:*:*:*:*

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