Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
bpf: Fix a btf decl_tag bug when tagging a function
syzbot reported a btf decl_tag bug with stack trace below:
general protection fault, probably for non-canonical address 0xdffffc0000000000: 0000 [#1] PREEMPT SMP KASAN
KASAN: null-ptr-deref in range [0x0000000000000000-0x0000000000000007]
CPU: 0 PID: 3592 Comm: syz-executor914 Not tainted 5.16.0-syzkaller-11424-gb7892f7d5cb2 #0
Hardware name: Google Google Compute Engine/Google Compute Engine, BIOS Google 01/01/2011
RIP: 0010:btf_type_vlen include/linux/btf.h:231 [inline]
RIP: 0010:btf_decl_tag_resolve+0x83e/0xaa0 kernel/bpf/btf.c:3910
...
Call Trace:
<TASK>
btf_resolve+0x251/0x1020 kernel/bpf/btf.c:4198
btf_check_all_types kernel/bpf/btf.c:4239 [inline]
btf_parse_type_sec kernel/bpf/btf.c:4280 [inline]
btf_parse kernel/bpf/btf.c:4513 [inline]
btf_new_fd+0x19fe/0x2370 kernel/bpf/btf.c:6047
bpf_btf_load kernel/bpf/syscall.c:4039 [inline]
__sys_bpf+0x1cbb/0x5970 kernel/bpf/syscall.c:4679
__do_sys_bpf kernel/bpf/syscall.c:4738 [inline]
__se_sys_bpf kernel/bpf/syscall.c:4736 [inline]
__x64_sys_bpf+0x75/0xb0 kernel/bpf/syscall.c:4736
do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/common.c:50 [inline]
do_syscall_64+0x35/0xb0 arch/x86/entry/common.c:80
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x44/0xae
The kasan error is triggered with an illegal BTF like below:
type 0: void
type 1: int
type 2: decl_tag to func type 3
type 3: func to func_proto type 8
The total number of types is 4 and the type 3 is illegal
since its func_proto type is out of range.
Currently, the target type of decl_tag can be struct/union, var or func.
Both struct/union and var implemented their own 'resolve' callback functions
and hence handled properly in kernel.
But func type doesn't have 'resolve' callback function. When
btf_decl_tag_resolve() tries to check func type, it tries to get
vlen of its func_proto type, which triggered the above kasan error.
To fix the issue, btf_decl_tag_resolve() needs to do btf_func_check()
before trying to accessing func_proto type.
In the current implementation, func type is checked with
btf_func_check() in the main checking function btf_check_all_types().
To fix the above kasan issue, let us implement 'resolve' callback
func type properly. The 'resolve' callback will be also called
in btf_check_all_types() for func types.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | 5.16 | 5.16.19 |
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 14 | linux | 5.17.3-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | linux | 5.17.3-1 | — |
| Debian 12 | linux | 5.17.3-1 | — |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | linux-raspi-realtime | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 22.04 LTS | linux-riscv +32 | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 20.04 LTS | linux-gke +28 | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 18.04 LTS | linux-gcp +14 | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 16.04 LTS | linux-hwe-edge | No fix yet | — |
Red Hat
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 9 | perf +29 | 5.14.0-162.6.1.el9_1 | RHSA-2022:8267 |
SUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES 15 SP5 | kernel-64kb +6 | 5.14.21-150500.55.100.1 | SUSE-SU-2025:1241-1 |
| SLES 15 SP5 | kernel-default-base | 5.14.21-150500.55.100.1.150500.6.47.1 | SUSE-SU-2025:1241-1 |
Show 4 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES for SAP 15 SP5 | kernel-default-base | 5.14.21-150500.55.100.1.150500.6.47.1 | SUSE-SU-2025:1241-1 |
| SLES for SAP 15 SP5 | kernel-docs +4 | 5.14.21-150500.55.100.1 | SUSE-SU-2025:1241-1 |
| SLE Micro 5.5 | kernel-default-base | 5.14.21-150500.55.100.1.150500.6.47.1 | SUSE-SU-2025:1241-1 |
| SLE Micro 5.5 | kernel-rt +1 | 5.14.21-150500.13.91.1 | SUSE-SU-2025:1176-1 |
| SLE Micro 5.5 | kernel-source +1 | 5.14.21-150500.55.100.1 | SUSE-SU-2025:1241-1 |
| SLE Live Patching 15 SP5 | kernel-default | 5.14.21-150500.55.100.1 | SUSE-SU-2025:1241-1 |
| SLE Live Patching 15 SP5 | kernel-livepatch-SLE15-SP5_Update_25 | 1-150500.11.3.1 | SUSE-SU-2025:1241-1 |
| SLE HPC 15 SP5 | kernel-64kb +5 | 5.14.21-150500.55.100.1 | SUSE-SU-2025:1241-1 |
| SLE HPC 15 SP5 | kernel-default-base | 5.14.21-150500.55.100.1.150500.6.47.1 | SUSE-SU-2025:1241-1 |
Advisories 4
- WID-SEC-2025-2107 Linux Kernel: Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Nov 9, 2026
- RHSA-2022:8267 Red Hat Security Advisory: kernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Oct 17, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2025:1176-1 Security update for the Linux Kernel SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2025:1241-1 Security update for the Linux Kernel SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026