What is CVE-2025-21972?

CVE-2025-21972 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux, classified under Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime. CVSS score: 8.8/10. Published 2025-04-01.

How severe is CVE-2025-21972?

High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 8.8 out of 10.

Vulnerability in Linux

CVE-2025-21972

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: mctp: unshare packets when reassembling Ensure that the frag_list used for reassembly isn't shared with other packets. This avoids incorrect reassembly when packets are cloned, and prevents a memory leak due to circular references between fragments and their skb_shared_info. The upcoming MCTP-over-USB driver uses skb_clone which can trigger the problem - other MCTP drivers don't share SKBs. A kunit test is added to reproduce the issue.

EPSS: 0.002 (7.1th percentile) — read the EPSS interpretation.

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 8.8 (High). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.

Affected products

Linux — versions 4a992bbd365094730a31bae1e12a6ca695336d57, 5.15, 0
Linux Linux_kernel — versions 6.14

Weakness classification (CWE)

CWE-401 — Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime

References

416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 (Patch)
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 (Patch)
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 (Patch)

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2025-21972?: CVE-2025-21972 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux, classified under Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime. CVSS score: 8.8/10. Published 2025-04-01.
How severe is CVE-2025-21972?: High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 8.8 out of 10.