Unity Linux 20.1070e Security Update: kernel (UTSA-2025-987069)

high Nessus Plugin ID 268277

Synopsis

The Unity Linux host is missing one or more security updates.

Description

The Unity Linux 20 host has a package installed that is affected by a vulnerability as referenced in the UTSA-2025-987069 advisory.

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

nfc: nci: add flush_workqueue to prevent uaf

Our detector found a concurrent use-after-free bug when detaching an NCI device. The main reason for this bug is the unexpected scheduling between the used delayed mechanism (timer and workqueue).

The race can be demonstrated below:

Thread-1 Thread-2 | nci_dev_up() | nci_open_device() | __nci_request(nci_reset_req) | nci_send_cmd | queue_work(cmd_work) nci_unregister_device() | nci_close_device() | ...
del_timer_sync(cmd_timer)[1] | ... | Worker nci_free_device() | nci_cmd_work() kfree(ndev)[3] | mod_timer(cmd_timer)[2]

In short, the cleanup routine thought that the cmd_timer has already been detached by [1] but the mod_timer can re-attach the timer [2], even it is already released [3], resulting in UAF.

This UAF is easy to trigger, crash trace by POC is like below

[ 66.703713] ================================================================== [ 66.703974] BUG: KASAN: use-after-free in enqueue_timer+0x448/0x490 [ 66.703974] Write of size 8 at addr ffff888009fb7058 by task kworker/u4:1/33 [ 66.703974] [ 66.703974] CPU: 1 PID: 33 Comm: kworker/u4:1 Not tainted 5.18.0-rc2 #5 [ 66.703974] Workqueue: nfc2_nci_cmd_wq nci_cmd_work [ 66.703974] Call Trace:
[ 66.703974] <TASK> [ 66.703974] dump_stack_lvl+0x57/0x7d [ 66.703974] print_report.cold+0x5e/0x5db [ 66.703974] ? enqueue_timer+0x448/0x490 [ 66.703974] kasan_report+0xbe/0x1c0 [ 66.703974] ? enqueue_timer+0x448/0x490 [ 66.703974] enqueue_timer+0x448/0x490 [ 66.703974] __mod_timer+0x5e6/0xb80 [ 66.703974] ? mark_held_locks+0x9e/0xe0 [ 66.703974] ? try_to_del_timer_sync+0xf0/0xf0 [ 66.703974] ? lockdep_hardirqs_on_prepare+0x17b/0x410 [ 66.703974] ? queue_work_on+0x61/0x80 [ 66.703974] ? lockdep_hardirqs_on+0xbf/0x130 [ 66.703974] process_one_work+0x8bb/0x1510 [ 66.703974] ? lockdep_hardirqs_on_prepare+0x410/0x410 [ 66.703974] ? pwq_dec_nr_in_flight+0x230/0x230 [ 66.703974] ? rwlock_bug.part.0+0x90/0x90 [ 66.703974] ? _raw_spin_lock_irq+0x41/0x50 [ 66.703974] worker_thread+0x575/0x1190 [ 66.703974] ? process_one_work+0x1510/0x1510 [ 66.703974] kthread+0x2a0/0x340 [ 66.703974] ? kthread_complete_and_exit+0x20/0x20 [ 66.703974] ret_from_fork+0x22/0x30 [ 66.703974] </TASK> [ 66.703974] [ 66.703974] Allocated by task 267:
[ 66.703974] kasan_save_stack+0x1e/0x40 [ 66.703974] __kasan_kmalloc+0x81/0xa0 [ 66.703974] nci_allocate_device+0xd3/0x390 [ 66.703974] nfcmrvl_nci_register_dev+0x183/0x2c0 [ 66.703974] nfcmrvl_nci_uart_open+0xf2/0x1dd [ 66.703974] nci_uart_tty_ioctl+0x2c3/0x4a0 [ 66.703974] tty_ioctl+0x764/0x1310 [ 66.703974] __x64_sys_ioctl+0x122/0x190 [ 66.703974] do_syscall_64+0x3b/0x90 [ 66.703974] entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x44/0xae [ 66.703974] [ 66.703974] Freed by task 406:
[ 66.703974] kasan_save_stack+0x1e/0x40 [ 66.703974] kasan_set_track+0x21/0x30 [ 66.703974] kasan_set_free_info+0x20/0x30 [ 66.703974] __kasan_slab_free+0x108/0x170 [ 66.703974] kfree+0xb0/0x330 [ 66.703974] nfcmrvl_nci_unregister_dev+0x90/0xd0 [ 66.703974] nci_uart_tty_close+0xdf/0x180 [ 66.703974] tty_ldisc_kill+0x73/0x110 [ 66.703974] tty_ldisc_hangup+0x281/0x5b0 [ 66.703974] __tty_hangup.part.0+0x431/0x890 [ 66.703974] tty_release+0x3a8/0xc80 [ 66.703974] __fput+0x1f0/0x8c0 [ 66.703974] task_work_run+0xc9/0x170 [ 66.703974] exit_to_user_mode_prepare+0x194/0x1a0 [ 66.703974] syscall_exit_to_user_mode+0x19/0x50 [ 66.703974] do_syscall_64+0x48/0x90 [ 66.703974] entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x44/0x
---truncated---

Tenable has extracted the preceding description block directly from the Unity Linux security advisory.

Note that Nessus has not tested for this issue but has instead relied only on the application's self-reported version number.

Solution

Update the affected kernel package.

Plugin Details

Severity: High

ID: 268277

File Name: unity_linux_UTSA-2025-987069.nasl

Version: 1.2

Type: local

Family: Unity Linux Local Security Checks

Published: 10/7/2025

Updated: 10/15/2025

Supported Sensors: Nessus

Risk Information

VPR

Risk Factor: Medium

Score: 6.7

CVSS v2

Risk Factor: Medium

Base Score: 5.9

Temporal Score: 4.4

Vector: CVSS2#AV:L/AC:H/Au:M/C:C/I:C/A:C

CVSS Score Source: CVE-2022-49059

CVSS v3

Risk Factor: High

Base Score: 7.8

Temporal Score: 6.8

Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Temporal Vector: CVSS:3.0/E:U/RL:O/RC:C

Vulnerability Information

Required KB Items: Host/local_checks_enabled, Host/cpu, Host/UOS-Server/release, Host/UOS-Server/rpm-list

Exploit Ease: No known exploits are available

Patch Publication Date: 9/23/2025

Vulnerability Publication Date: 2/26/2025

Reference Information

CVE: CVE-2022-49059

Detections

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