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espintcp: remove encap socket caching to avoid reference leak

Type: advisorySource: Official CVE List1 source record

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: espintcp: remove encap socket caching to avoid reference leak The current scheme for caching the encap socket can lead to reference leaks when we try to delete the netns. The reference chain is: xfrm_state -> enacp_sk -> netns Since the encap socket is a userspace socket, it holds a reference on the netns. If we delete the espintcp state (through flush or individual delete) before removing the netns, the reference on the socket is dropped and the netns is correctly deleted. Otherwise, the netns may not be reachable anymore (if all processes within the ns have terminated), so we cannot delete the xfrm state to drop its reference on the socket. This patch results in a small (~2% in my tests) performance regression. A GC-type mechanism could be added for the socket cache, to clear references if the state hasn't been used "recently", but it's a lot more complex than just not caching the socket.

Announced Source revision 1
Original source ↗

CVE-2025-38097

Primary source · Revision 1

Imported from structured advisory data. Source references identify upstream records or fields; verify affected versions and your deployed configuration.

Security context

Source reference: cve:CVE-2025-38097

Linux

Source reference: /containers/cna/affected/0/product

Affected versions
Not stated in this record
Fixed versions
Not stated in this record
Prerequisites
Not stated in this record

Linux

Source reference: /containers/cna/affected/1/product

Affected versions
Not stated in this record
Fixed versions
Not stated in this record
Prerequisites
Not stated in this record

Structured affected-version data

Original package identities and version rules from this source.

[
  {
    "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
    "vendor": "Linux",
    "product": "Linux",
    "versions": [
      {
        "status": "affected",
        "version": "e27cca96cd68fa2c6814c90f9a1cfd36bb68c593",
        "lessThan": "e32bafd08ee35feacd47b05cc5bfe9cd9659cd25",
        "versionType": "git"
      },
      {
        "status": "affected",
        "version": "e27cca96cd68fa2c6814c90f9a1cfd36bb68c593",
        "lessThan": "9673ca00e6c5503069dc98780e2e89db0e663c16",
        "versionType": "git"
      },
      {
        "status": "affected",
        "version": "e27cca96cd68fa2c6814c90f9a1cfd36bb68c593",
        "lessThan": "e4cde54b46a87231c77256a633be1bef62687d69",
        "versionType": "git"
      },
      {
        "status": "affected",
        "version": "e27cca96cd68fa2c6814c90f9a1cfd36bb68c593",
        "lessThan": "b58a295d10065960bcb9d60cb8ca6ead9837cd27",
        "versionType": "git"
      },
      {
        "status": "affected",
        "version": "e27cca96cd68fa2c6814c90f9a1cfd36bb68c593",
        "lessThan": "9cbca30102028f9ad3d2098f935c4368f581fd07",
        "versionType": "git"
      },
      {
        "status": "affected",
        "version": "e27cca96cd68fa2c6814c90f9a1cfd36bb68c593",
        "lessThan": "74fd327767fb784c5875cf7c4ba1217f26020943",
        "versionType": "git"
      },
      {
        "status": "affected",
        "version": "e27cca96cd68fa2c6814c90f9a1cfd36bb68c593",
        "lessThan": "028363685bd0b7a19b4a820f82dd905b1dc83999",
        "versionType": "git"
      }
    ],
    "programFiles": [
      "include/net/xfrm.h",
      "net/ipv4/esp4.c",
      "net/ipv6/esp6.c",
      "net/xfrm/xfrm_state.c"
    ],
    "defaultStatus": "unaffected"
  },
  {
    "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
    "vendor": "Linux",
    "product": "Linux",
    "versions": [
      {
        "status": "affected",
        "version": "5.6"
      },
      {
        "status": "unaffected",
        "version": "0",
        "lessThan": "5.6",
        "versionType": "semver"
      },
      {
        "status": "unaffected",
        "version": "5.10.270",
        "versionType": "semver",
        "lessThanOrEqual": "5.10.*"
      },
      {
        "status": "unaffected",
        "version": "5.15.221",
        "versionType": "semver",
        "lessThanOrEqual": "5.15.*"
      },
      {
        "status": "unaffected",
        "version": "6.1.141",
        "versionType": "semver",
        "lessThanOrEqual": "6.1.*"
      },
      {
        "status": "unaffected",
        "version": "6.6.93",
        "versionType": "semver",
        "lessThanOrEqual": "6.6.*"
      },
      {
        "status": "unaffected",
        "version": "6.12.31",
        "versionType": "semver",
        "lessThanOrEqual": "6.12.*"
      },
      {
        "status": "unaffected",
        "version": "6.14.9",
        "versionType": "semver",
        "lessThanOrEqual": "6.14.*"
      },
      {
        "status": "unaffected",
        "version": "6.15",
        "versionType": "original_commit_for_fix",
        "lessThanOrEqual": "*"
      }
    ],
    "programFiles": [
      "include/net/xfrm.h",
      "net/ipv4/esp4.c",
      "net/ipv6/esp6.c",
      "net/xfrm/xfrm_state.c"
    ],
    "defaultStatus": "affected"
  }
]
Related CVEs
CVE-2025-38097

Source reference: /cveMetadata/cveId

Publisher severity

high

Source reference: /containers/cna/metrics

Event
#30518 · Revision 1
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Publisher date
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