KEYS: Fix add_key() race with keyring restriction

Overview

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

KEYS: Fix add_key() race with keyring restriction

__key_create_or_update() snapshots keyring->restrict_link before taking the destination keyring's semaphore. keyring_restrict() installs a restriction while holding that semaphore.

This allows a writer to observe no restriction, wait for the keyring owner to install a reject-all restriction and return successfully, and then link a key using the stale NULL snapshot. The writer only needs write permission on the destination keyring.

Move the restrict_link read after __key_link_lock() and __key_link_begin(). The read and the subsequent restriction check are then serialized with restriction installation by keyring->sem.

The race was reproduced on v7.2.8 in 19 executions where restriction installation returned before the link completed. All 19 linked the key despite the reject-all restriction. With this change, 312 executions reached the same ordering and every add_key() call failed with -EPERM.

The issue was found by manual concurrency analysis assisted by AI-based analysis and independently verified with a QEMU reproducer and kernel instrumentation.

Affected

• Linux >= 5ac7eace2d00eab5ae0e9fdee63e38aee6001f7c < 305f1828b871dd46bf41addeb6f11d2c162dcb25
• Linux >= 5ac7eace2d00eab5ae0e9fdee63e38aee6001f7c < f99399b48e3edd6851fac34cd329bab9f1f33baf
• Linux >= 5ac7eace2d00eab5ae0e9fdee63e38aee6001f7c < 11516a0c402a6c1fa52254aa70d8d65fb921e59e
• Linux >= 5ac7eace2d00eab5ae0e9fdee63e38aee6001f7c < da0b595d8e6e2dd798f6e34e09dc51a13b888514
• Linux >= 5ac7eace2d00eab5ae0e9fdee63e38aee6001f7c < dd3ea3fcba7c75493760cdbccd35f029597e8d5e
• Linux 4.7

Remediation

Refer to the linked advisories for vendor-supplied fixes and affected version ranges.