CVE intelligence and bounded remediation

CVE-2021-47441 — Linux Linux Kernel security vulnerability

High CVSS 7.3

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mlxsw: thermal: Fix out-of-bounds memory accesses Currently, mlxsw allows cooling states to be set above the maximum cooling state supported by the driver: # cat /sys/class/thermal/thermal_zone2/cdev0/type mlxsw_fan # cat /sys/class/thermal/thermal_zone2/cdev0/max_state 10 # echo 18 > /sys/class/thermal/thermal_zone2/cdev0/cur_state # echo $? 0 This results in out-of-bounds memory accesses when thermal state transition statistics are enabled (CONFIG_THERMAL_STATISTICS=y), as the transition table is accessed with a too large index (state) [1]. According to the thermal maintainer, it is the responsibility of the driver to reject such operations [2]. Therefore, return an error when the state to be set exceeds the maximum cooling state supported by the driver. To avoid dead code, as suggested by the thermal maintainer [3], partially revert commit a421ce088ac8 ("mlxsw: core: Extend cooling device with cooling levels") that tried to interpret these invalid cooling states (above the maximum) in a special way. The cooling levels array is not removed in order to prevent the fans going below 20% PWM, which would cause them…

Severity
High
CVSS
7.3 (3.1)
Published
2024-05-22
CISA KEV
Not currently listed
Ecosystem
linux/kernel
Weaknesses
CWE-787

Affected products

  • linux / linux_kernel
  • linux / linux_kernel / 5.15

Showing 2 representative product identities from 8 source matches. Confirm exact affected versions with the linked vendor and NVD evidence.

Matched remediation archetype

Buffer bounds, memory safety, and memory corruption

This catalog composition supplies bounded fallback guidance. Explicitly reviewed curated workflows load with the complete record below.

Check exposure

  • Identify affected native-code versions, build flags, architectures, parsers, codecs, drivers, and input paths in all shipped artifacts.
  • Determine whether untrusted data reaches the affected routine and the process privilege, sandbox, and network exposure.
  • Confirm statically linked, vendored, firmware, and platform-provided copies, not only package-manager records.

Remediate safely

  • Apply the maintained upstream correction or replace the affected component, then rebuild every dependent artifact from clean inputs.
  • Adopt bounds-checked interfaces, validated sizes and integer conversions, clear ownership, and memory-safe components where practical.
  • Enable supported compiler and runtime hardening and add sanitized tests and fuzz regression seeds derived from non-weaponized fixtures.

Authoritative sources

Complete CVE record and remediation plan

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