CVE-2021-47304 tcp: fix tcp_init_transfer() to not reset icsk_ca_initialized

What is CVE-2021-47304?

CVE-2021-47304 is a medium-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 21 May 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:

tcp: fix tcp_init_transfer() to not reset icsk_ca_initialized

This commit fixes a bug (found by syzkaller) that could cause spurious double-initializations for congestion control modules, which could cause memory leaks or other problems for congestion control modules (like CDG) that allocate memory in their init functions.

The buggy scenario constructed by syzkaller was something like:

(1) create a TCP socket (2) initiate a TFO connect via sendto() (3) while socket is in TCP_SYN_SENT, call setsockopt(TCP_CONGESTION), which calls: tcp_set_congestion_control() -> tcp_reinit_congestion_control() -> tcp_init_congestion_control() (4) receive ACK, connection is established, call tcp_init_transfer(), set icsk_ca_initialized=0 (without first calling cc->release()), call tcp_init_congestion_control() again.

Note that in this sequence tcp_init_congestion_control() is called twice without a cc->release() call in between. Thus, for CC modules that allocate memory in their init() function, e.g, CDG, a memory leak may occur. The syzkaller tool managed to find a reproducer that triggered such a leak in CDG.

The bug was introduced when that commit 8919a9b31eb4 ("tcp: Only init congestion control if not initialized already") introduced icsk_ca_initialized and set icsk_ca_initialized to 0 in tcp_init_transfer(), missing the possibility for a sequence like the one above, where a process could call setsockopt(TCP_CONGESTION) in state TCP_SYN_SENT (i.e. after the connect() or TFO open sendmsg()), which would call tcp_init_congestion_control(). It did not intend to reset any initialization that the user had already explicitly made; it just missed the possibility of that particular sequence (which syzkaller managed to find).

Weakness: CWE-415

Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-47304?

It affects 1 product.

Products include Linux kernel.

How do I fix CVE-2021-47304?

Apply the vendor's patch.

Upgrade to the fixed version. Memory-safe languages, compiler hardening and fuzzing prevent most new cases. More about Memory corruption.

Is CVE-2021-47304 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-47304 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

• CVE-2026-53266 Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write Exploited High 8.8
• CVE-2013-6282 Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation Exploited High 8.8
• CVE-2022-0185 Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow Exploited High 8.4
• CVE-2013-2094 Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation Exploited High 8.4
• CVE-2026-53362 Linux Kernel Unspecified Exploited High 7.8

All Linux kernel vulnerabilities

Sources

• CVE record
• NVD
• OSV
• GitHub advisory
• How this page is made

Also known as DEBIAN-CVE-2021-47304, GHSA-gr8g-fg7p-9238, UBUNTU-CVE-2021-47304.