[PATCH net-next] sctp: fix use-after-free in timeout event handling

luoqing <[email protected]> Tue, 4 Aug 2026 16:43:10 +0800
Newsgroups gmane.linux.network,gmane.linux.kernel
Message-ID <[email protected]>
From: Qing Luo <[email protected]>

sctp_do_sm() in sctp_generate_timeout_event() may process an
SCTP_CMD_ASSOC_FAILED command, which calls sctp_association_free() and
drops the last reference, freeing the association and its socket while
the timer callback is still running. The callback then dereferences the
freed sk and asoc, a use-after-free.

Hold an extra reference on the association at the start of the callback
so both it and its socket stay alive until we are done, and release it
at out_unlock along with the timer's reference. Also only set sk->sk_err
while the association is still alive.

Assisted-by: LLM
Signed-off-by: Qing Luo <[email protected]>
---
 net/sctp/sm_sideeffect.c | 12 +++++++++---
 1 file changed, 9 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-)

diff --git a/net/sctp/sm_sideeffect.c b/net/sctp/sm_sideeffect.c
index 424f10a6fdba..f384c2faf1c4 100644
--- a/net/sctp/sm_sideeffect.c
+++ b/net/sctp/sm_sideeffect.c
@@ -275,6 +275,12 @@ static void sctp_generate_timeout_event(struct sctp_association *asoc,
 	int error = 0;
 
 	bh_lock_sock(sk);
+
+	/* Take an extra ref to keep asoc alive through sctp_do_sm().
+	 * The timer already holds one ref; we'll release both at out_unlock.
+	 */
+	sctp_association_hold(asoc);
+
 	if (sock_owned_by_user(sk)) {
 		pr_debug("%s: sock is busy: timer %d\n", __func__,
 			 timeout_type);
@@ -296,13 +302,13 @@ static void sctp_generate_timeout_event(struct sctp_association *asoc,
 			   SCTP_ST_TIMEOUT(timeout_type),
 			   asoc->state, asoc->ep, asoc,
 			   (void *)timeout_type, GFP_ATOMIC);
-
-	if (error)
+	if (!asoc->base.dead && error)
 		sk->sk_err = -error;
 
 out_unlock:
 	bh_unlock_sock(sk);
-	sctp_association_put(asoc);
+	sctp_association_put(asoc); 	/* release timer's ref */
+	sctp_association_put(asoc);	/* release our extra ref */
 }
 
 static void sctp_generate_t1_cookie_event(struct timer_list *t)
-- 
2.25.1