Host crash via premature vCPU iteration
Published Feb 29, 2024 · Updated May 11, 2026
Null-pointer dereference in Linux kernel KVM SVM 5.11 before 5.11.21 and 5.12 before 5.12.4 allows local users to crash the host. The SEV VMSA encryption path iterates created_vcpus, whose count increments before each vCPU pointer is installed, and dereferences a missing entry during concurrent KVM_CREATE_VCPU operations. Triggering the flaw requires local KVM access, AMD SVM with SEV, and a creation race; the bounded consequence is a host-kernel crash.
Summary
What happened
Null-pointer dereference in Linux kernel KVM SVM 5.11 before 5.11.21 and 5.12 before 5.12.4 allows local users to crash the host. The SEV VMSA encryption path iterates created_vcpus, whose count increments before each vCPU pointer is installed, and dereferences a missing entry during concurrent KVM_CREATE_VCPU operations. Triggering the flaw requires local KVM access, AMD SVM with SEV, and a creation race; the bounded consequence is a host-kernel crash.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2021-47062
- Published
- Feb 29, 2024
- Updated
- May 11, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- CWE-476, T1499.004
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Feb 29, 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?
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- Affected versionversion=5.11
- Affected versionversion=ad73109ae7ec30d5bfb76be108e304f9f0af4829 <ba7bf5d6336aa9c0d977b161bfa420c56d46ee40
- Affected versionversion=ad73109ae7ec30d5bfb76be108e304f9f0af4829 <bd0cced2ae93195668f983d443f7f17e8efd24d2
- Affected versionversion=ad73109ae7ec30d5bfb76be108e304f9f0af4829 <c36b16d29f3af5f32fc1b2a3401bf48f71cabee1
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
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Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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