# CVE-2025-21811: nilfs2: protect access to buffers with no active references

> A race condition in the nilfs2 filesystem allows attackers to trigger a use-after-free, potentially leading to code execution or privilege escalation.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **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 2025
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2025-21811, DEBIAN-CVE-2025-21811, GHSA-j2gc-738w-q744, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2404-CVE-2025-21811, UBUNTU-CVE-2025-21811

## What is CVE-2025-21811?

CVE-2025-21811 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 27 Feb 2025. 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:

nilfs2: protect access to buffers with no active references

nilfs_lookup_dirty_data_buffers(), which iterates through the buffers
attached to dirty data folios/pages, accesses the attached buffers without
locking the folios/pages.

For data cache, nilfs_clear_folio_dirty() may be called asynchronously
when the file system degenerates to read only, so
nilfs_lookup_dirty_data_buffers() still has the potential to cause use
after free issues when buffers lose the protection of their dirty state
midway due to this asynchronous clearing and are unintentionally freed by
try_to_free_buffers().

Eliminate this race issue by adjusting the lock section in this function.

Weakness: CWE-416 (Use After Free)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-21811?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2025-21811?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2025-21811 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-21811 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-2025-21811 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2025-21811 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 27 Feb 2025. 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-2025-21811 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-2025-21811/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-21811/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-21811
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-21811
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2025-21811

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-21811/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.