CVE-2022-50220
Published: Jun 18, 2025
Modified: May 11, 2026
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: usbnet: Fix linkwatch use-after-free on disconnect usbnet uses the work usbnet_deferred_kevent() to perform tasks which may sleep. On disconnect, completion of the work was originally awaited in ->ndo_stop(). But in 2003, that was moved to ->disconnect() by historic commit "[PATCH] USB: usbnet, prevent exotic rtnl deadlock": https://git.kernel.org/tglx/history/c/0f138bbfd83c The change was made because back then, the kernel's workqueue implementation did not allow waiting for a single work. One had to wait for completion of *all* work by calling flush_scheduled_work(), and that could deadlock when waiting for usbnet_deferred_kevent() with rtnl_mutex held in ->ndo_stop(). The commit solved one problem but created another: It causes a use-after-free in USB Ethernet drivers aqc111.c, asix_devices.c, ax88179_178a.c, ch9200.c and smsc75xx.c: * If the drivers receive a link change interrupt immediately before disconnect, they raise EVENT_LINK_RESET in their (non-sleepable) ->status() callback and schedule usbnet_deferred_kevent(). * usbnet_deferred_kevent() invokes the driver's ->link_reset() callback, which calls netif_carrier_{on,off}(). * That in turn schedules the work linkwatch_event(). Because usbnet_deferred_kevent() is awaited after unregister_netdev(), netif_carrier_{on,off}() may operate on an unregistered netdev and linkwatch_event() may run after free_netdev(), causing a use-after-free. In 2010, usbnet was changed to only wait for a single instance of usbnet_deferred_kevent() instead of *all* work by commit 23f333a2bfaf ("drivers/net: don't use flush_scheduled_work()"). Unfortunately the commit neglected to move the wait back to ->ndo_stop(). Rectify that omission at long last.
| Vendor | Product | Versions |
|---|---|---|
Linux | Linux | affected 23f333a2bfafba80339315b724808982a9de57d9 - < d2d6b530d89b0a912148018027386aa049f0a309affected 23f333a2bfafba80339315b724808982a9de57d9 - < e2a521a7dcc463c5017b4426ca0804e151faeff7affected 23f333a2bfafba80339315b724808982a9de57d9 - < 7f77dcbc030c2faa6d8e8a594985eeb34018409eaffected 23f333a2bfafba80339315b724808982a9de57d9 - < 8b4588b8b00b299be16a35be67b331d8fdba03f3affected 23f333a2bfafba80339315b724808982a9de57d9 - < 135199a2edd459d2b123144efcd7f9bcd95128e4+4 more versions |
Linux | Linux | affected 2.6.38unaffected 0 - < 2.6.38unaffected 4.9.326 - <= 4.9.*unaffected 4.14.291 - <= 4.14.*unaffected 4.19.256 - <= 4.19.*+6 more versions |
References
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