Error-state corruption via stale SWERR acknowledgement
Published Feb 27, 2024 · Updated May 11, 2026
Improper register handling in affected Linux kernel releases allows local users to corrupt Intel idxd error state during an interrupt. The process_misc_interrupts function writes the full IDXD_SWERR_ACK mask instead of masking it with the SWERR bits already read, clearing an OVERFLOW bit set by a later error. Exploitation requires low-privileged local access, Intel idxd hardware, and a second device error during the interrupt-handler race; the bounded consequence is loss of the overflow indication.
Summary
What happened
Improper register handling in affected Linux kernel releases allows local users to corrupt Intel idxd error state during an interrupt. The process_misc_interrupts function writes the full IDXD_SWERR_ACK mask instead of masking it with the SWERR bits already read, clearing an OVERFLOW bit set by a later error. Exploitation requires low-privileged local access, Intel idxd hardware, and a second device error during the interrupt-handler race; the bounded consequence is loss of the overflow indication.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2021-46920
- Published
- Feb 27, 2024
- Updated
- May 11, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- Unavailable
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Feb 27, 2024CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- May 11, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=5.6
- Affected versionversion=bfe1d56091c1a404b3d4ce7e9809d745fc4453bb <02981a44a0e402089775416371bd2e0c935685f8
- Affected versionversion=bfe1d56091c1a404b3d4ce7e9809d745fc4453bb <a5ad12d5d69c63af289a37f05187a0c6fe93553d
- Affected versionversion=bfe1d56091c1a404b3d4ce7e9809d745fc4453bb <ea941ac294d75d0ace50797aebf0056f6f8f7a7f
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Weakness, pattern, technique
No sourced classifications are available.
Public exploit references
No public exploit references are available in this record.
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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