CVE-2021-46990
5.5 · MEDIUMOverview
CVE-2021-46990 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting linux linux_kernel. It was published on February 28, 2024 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 5.5 (MEDIUM).
This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 5.5, rated MEDIUM. It requires local or adjacent network access to exploit. Some level of privileges is required for exploitation.
Technical Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
powerpc/64s: Fix crashes when toggling entry flush barrier
The entry flush mitigation can be enabled/disabled at runtime via a
debugfs file (entry_flush), which causes the kernel to patch itself to
enable/disable the relevant mitigations.
However depending on which mitigation we're using, it may not be safe to
do that patching while other CPUs are active. For example the following
crash:
sleeper[15639]: segfault (11) at c000000000004c20 nip c000000000004c20 lr c000000000004c20
Shows that we returned to userspace with a corrupted LR that points into
the kernel, due to executing the partially patched call to the fallback
entry flush (ie. we missed the LR restore).
Fix it by doing the patching under stop machine. The CPUs that aren't
doing the patching will be spinning in the core of the stop machine
logic. That is currently sufficient for our purposes, because none of
the patching we do is to that code or anywher
Remediation
Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from linux. Update linux_kernel to the latest patched version. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.
Affected Products
| Vendor | Product | Versions | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | linux_kernel | >= 4.4.245, < 4.4.269 | Affected |
References
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CVE-2021-46990?
CVE-2021-46990 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting linux linux_kernel. It was published on February 28, 2024 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 5.5 (MEDIUM).
How severe is CVE-2021-46990?
This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 5.5, rated MEDIUM. It requires local or adjacent network access to exploit. Some level of privileges is required for exploitation.
How do I fix or remediate CVE-2021-46990?
Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from linux. Update linux_kernel to the latest patched version. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.
How can CyberStrike help with CVE-2021-46990?
CyberStrike's AI-powered security agents can automatically detect CVE-2021-46990 across your infrastructure using autonomous pentesting, DAST scanning, and HackBrowser. The platform continuously monitors for known vulnerabilities and provides actionable remediation guidance prioritized by real-world exploitability.
How CyberStrike Helps
AI agents map your attack surface to find vulnerabilities like this one.
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