# CVE-2021-46912: net: Make tcp_allowed_congestion_control readonly in non-init netns

> A Linux kernel vulnerability allows writing to a global sysctl in one network namespace to leak configuration into others, enabling information disclosure.

- **Severity:** High 7.3 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:H/A:L`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 27 Feb 2024
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2021-46912, GHSA-gpxm-mp2h-x3pp, UBUNTU-CVE-2021-46912

## What is CVE-2021-46912?

CVE-2021-46912 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 27 Feb 2024. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

net: Make tcp_allowed_congestion_control readonly in non-init netns

Currently, tcp_allowed_congestion_control is global and writable;
writing to it in any net namespace will leak into all other net
namespaces.

tcp_available_congestion_control and tcp_allowed_congestion_control are
the only sysctls in ipv4_net_table (the per-netns sysctl table) with a
NULL data pointer; their handlers (proc_tcp_available_congestion_control
and proc_allowed_congestion_control) have no other way of referencing a
struct net. Thus, they operate globally.

Because ipv4_net_table does not use designated initializers, there is no
easy way to fix up this one "bad" table entry. However, the data pointer
updating logic shouldn't be applied to NULL pointers anyway, so we
instead force these entries to be read-only.

These sysctls used to exist in ipv4_table (init-net only), but they were
moved to the per-net ipv4_net_table, presumably without realizing that
tcp_allowed_congestion_control was writable and thus introduced a leak.

Because the intent of that commit was only to know (i.e. read) "which
congestion algorithms are available or allowed", this read-only solution
should be sufficient.

The logic added in recent commit
31c4d2f160eb: ("net: Ensure net namespace isolation of sysctls")
does not and cannot check for NULL data pointers, because
other table entries (e.g. /proc/sys/net/netfilter/nf_log/) have
.data=NULL but use other methods (.extra2) to access the struct net.

Weakness: CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-46912?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2021-46912?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2021-46912 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-46912 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

- [CVE-2026-53266](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53266/): Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-6282](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6282/): Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-0185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0185/): Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-2094](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2094/): Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-53362](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53362/): Linux Kernel Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2021-46912 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2021-46912 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 27 Feb 2024. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-46912 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux kernel. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-46912/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-46912/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-46912
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-46912
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-46912

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-46912/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.