GHSA-XR5J-V9XH-823C
Vulnerability from github – Published: 2026-07-19 18:31 – Updated: 2026-07-20 15:31In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
ovpn: tcp - use cached peer pointer in ovpn_tcp_close()
ovpn_tcp_close() loads the ovpn_socket via rcu_dereference_sk_user_data() under rcu_read_lock(), takes a reference on sock->peer, caches the peer pointer in a local, and drops the read lock. It then passes sock->peer (rather than the cached local) to ovpn_peer_del(), re-dereferencing the ovpn_socket after the RCU read section has ended.
Unlike ovpn_tcp_sendmsg(), which uses the same "load under RCU, use after unlock" pattern but is protected by lock_sock() held across the function, ovpn_tcp_close() runs without the socket lock: inet_release() invokes sk_prot->close() without taking lock_sock first.
ovpn_socket_release() can therefore complete its kref_put -> detach -> synchronize_rcu -> kfree(sock) sequence concurrently, in the window after ovpn_tcp_close() drops rcu_read_lock() but before it dereferences sock->peer. The synchronize_rcu() in ovpn_socket_release() protects readers that use the dereferenced pointer inside the RCU read section, not those that escape the pointer to a local and use it afterwards.
A reproducer follows the pattern of commit 94560267d6c4 ("ovpn: tcp - don't deref NULL sk_socket member after tcp_close()"): trigger a peer removal (keepalive expiration or netlink OVPN_CMD_DEL_PEER) at the same moment userspace closes the TCP fd. That commit fixed the detach-side of the same race window; this one fixes the close-side at a different victim.
Tighten the entry block to read sock->peer exactly once into the cached peer local, and route all subsequent uses (the hold check, the ovpn_peer_del() call, and the prot->close() invocation) through that local. sock->peer is only ever written once in ovpn_socket_new() under lock_sock(), before rcu_assign_sk_user_data() publishes the ovpn_socket, and is never reassigned afterwards - but the previous multi-read pattern made that invariant implicit rather than explicit. The same multi-read shape exists in ovpn_tcp_recvmsg(), ovpn_tcp_sendmsg(), ovpn_tcp_data_ready() and ovpn_tcp_write_space(); those will be cleaned up via a dedicated helper in a follow-up net-next series.
{
"affected": [],
"aliases": [
"CVE-2026-64045"
],
"database_specific": {
"cwe_ids": [],
"github_reviewed": false,
"github_reviewed_at": null,
"nvd_published_at": "2026-07-19T16:17:44Z",
"severity": "HIGH"
},
"details": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\novpn: tcp - use cached peer pointer in ovpn_tcp_close()\n\novpn_tcp_close() loads the ovpn_socket via rcu_dereference_sk_user_data()\nunder rcu_read_lock(), takes a reference on sock-\u003epeer, caches the peer\npointer in a local, and drops the read lock. It then passes sock-\u003epeer\n(rather than the cached local) to ovpn_peer_del(), re-dereferencing the\novpn_socket after the RCU read section has ended.\n\nUnlike ovpn_tcp_sendmsg(), which uses the same \"load under RCU, use\nafter unlock\" pattern but is protected by lock_sock() held across the\nfunction, ovpn_tcp_close() runs without the socket lock: inet_release()\ninvokes sk_prot-\u003eclose() without taking lock_sock first.\n\novpn_socket_release() can therefore complete its kref_put -\u003e detach -\u003e\nsynchronize_rcu -\u003e kfree(sock) sequence concurrently, in the window\nafter ovpn_tcp_close() drops rcu_read_lock() but before it dereferences\nsock-\u003epeer. The synchronize_rcu() in ovpn_socket_release() protects\nreaders that use the dereferenced pointer inside the RCU read section,\nnot those that escape the pointer to a local and use it afterwards.\n\nA reproducer follows the pattern of commit 94560267d6c4 (\"ovpn: tcp -\ndon\u0027t deref NULL sk_socket member after tcp_close()\"): trigger a peer\nremoval (keepalive expiration or netlink OVPN_CMD_DEL_PEER) at the same\nmoment userspace closes the TCP fd. That commit fixed the detach-side\nof the same race window; this one fixes the close-side at a different\nvictim.\n\nTighten the entry block to read sock-\u003epeer exactly once into the cached\npeer local, and route all subsequent uses (the hold check, the\novpn_peer_del() call, and the prot-\u003eclose() invocation) through that\nlocal. sock-\u003epeer is only ever written once in ovpn_socket_new() under\nlock_sock(), before rcu_assign_sk_user_data() publishes the ovpn_socket,\nand is never reassigned afterwards - but the previous multi-read pattern\nmade that invariant implicit rather than explicit. The same multi-read\nshape exists in ovpn_tcp_recvmsg(), ovpn_tcp_sendmsg(),\novpn_tcp_data_ready() and ovpn_tcp_write_space(); those will be cleaned\nup via a dedicated helper in a follow-up net-next series.",
"id": "GHSA-xr5j-v9xh-823c",
"modified": "2026-07-20T15:31:57Z",
"published": "2026-07-19T18:31:50Z",
"references": [
{
"type": "ADVISORY",
"url": "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-64045"
},
{
"type": "WEB",
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/775d8d7ad02aa345e1588424a6a8b9ae49fb9012"
},
{
"type": "WEB",
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d3ef441907fca7c340979e577a3db3bb634bf166"
},
{
"type": "WEB",
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e5460eb7238c19d651a9b22b2378b587033a4095"
}
],
"schema_version": "1.4.0",
"severity": [
{
"score": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H",
"type": "CVSS_V3"
}
]
}
Sightings
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Nomenclature
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- Not confirmed: The user expressed doubt about the validity of the vulnerability.
- Not patched: The vulnerability was not observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.