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Linux Distros Unpatched Vulnerability : CVE-2021-28703

🗓️ 18 Aug 2025 00:00:00Reported by TenableType 
nessus
 nessus
🔗 www.tenable.com👁 3 Views

CVE-2021-28703 Xen grant table v2 pages may be accessible after deallocation; Xen 4.14 fix backported; Nessus relies on vendor package presence

Related
Refs
Code
ReporterTitlePublishedViews
Family
ATTACKERKB
CVE-2021-28703
7 Dec 202112:15
attackerkb
AlpineLinux
CVE-2021-28703
7 Dec 202112:15
alpinelinux
Circl
CVE-2021-28703
7 Dec 202114:21
circl
CNNVD
Xen 安全漏洞
23 Nov 202100:00
cnnvd
CVE
CVE-2021-28703
7 Dec 202100:00
cve
Cvelist
CVE-2021-28703
7 Dec 202100:00
cvelist
Debian CVE
CVE-2021-28703
7 Dec 202100:00
debiancve
Tenable Nessus
GLSA-202402-07 : Xen: Multiple Vulnerabilities
4 Feb 202400:00
nessus
Tenable Nessus
SUSE SLES11 Security Update : xen (SUSE-SU-2021:14848-1)
2 Dec 202100:00
nessus
Gentoo Linux
Xen: Multiple Vulnerabilities
4 Feb 202400:00
gentoo
Rows per page
#%NASL_MIN_LEVEL 80900
##
# (C) Tenable, Inc.
##

include('compat.inc');

if (description)
{
  script_id(250439);
  script_version("1.6");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"plugin_modification_date", value:"2026/05/21");

  script_cve_id("CVE-2021-28703");

  script_name(english:"Linux Distros Unpatched Vulnerability : CVE-2021-28703");

  script_set_attribute(attribute:"synopsis", value:
"The Linux/Unix host has one or more packages installed with a vulnerability that the vendor indicates will not be
patched.");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"description", value:
"The Linux/Unix host has one or more packages installed that are impacted by a vulnerability without a vendor supplied
patch available.

  - grant table v2 status pages may remain accessible after de-allocation (take two) Guest get permitted
    access to certain Xen-owned pages of memory. The majority of such pages remain allocated / associated with
    a guest for its entire lifetime. Grant table v2 status pages, however, get de-allocated when a guest
    switched (back) from v2 to v1. The freeing of such pages requires that the hypervisor know where in the
    guest these pages were mapped. The hypervisor tracks only one use within guest space, but racing requests
    from the guest to insert mappings of these pages may result in any of them to become mapped in multiple
    locations. Upon switching back from v2 to v1, the guest would then retain access to a page that was freed
    and perhaps re-used for other purposes. This bug was fortuitously fixed by code cleanup in Xen 4.14, and
    backported to security-supported Xen branches as a prerequisite of the fix for XSA-378. (CVE-2021-28703)

Note that Nessus relies on the presence of the package as reported by the vendor.");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"see_also", value:"https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2021-28703");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"solution", value:
"There is no known solution at this time.");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"agent", value:"unix");
  script_set_cvss_base_vector("CVSS2#AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C");
  script_set_cvss_temporal_vector("CVSS2#E:U/RL:U/RC:C");
  script_set_cvss3_base_vector("CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H");
  script_set_cvss3_temporal_vector("CVSS:3.0/E:U/RL:U/RC:C");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"cvss_score_source", value:"CVE-2021-28703");

  script_set_attribute(attribute:"exploitability_ease", value:"No known exploits are available");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"exploit_available", value:"false");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"vendor_unpatched", value:"true");

  script_set_attribute(attribute:"vuln_publication_date", value:"2021/12/02");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"plugin_publication_date", value:"2025/08/18");

  script_set_attribute(attribute:"plugin_type", value:"local");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"cpe", value:"cpe:/o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:16.04:-:lts");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"cpe", value:"cpe:/o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:18.04:-:lts");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"cpe", value:"cpe:/o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:20.04:-:lts");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"cpe", value:"cpe:/o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:22.04:-:lts");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"cpe", value:"cpe:/o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:24.04:-:lts");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"cpe", value:"cpe:/o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:25.04");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"cpe", value:"cpe:/o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:25.10");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"cpe", value:"p-cpe:/a:canonical:ubuntu_linux:xen");
  script_set_attribute(attribute:"generated_plugin", value:"current");
  script_end_attributes();

  script_category(ACT_GATHER_INFO);
  script_family(english:"Misc.");

  script_copyright(english:"This script is Copyright (C) 2025-2026 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.");

  script_dependencies("ssh_get_info2.nasl", "set_linux_os_id.nasl");
  script_require_keys("Host/cpu", "Host/local_checks_enabled", "global_settings/vendor_unpatched", "Host/OS/identifier");
  script_require_ports("Host/OS/Ubuntu Linux-16.04", "Host/OS/Ubuntu Linux-18.04", "Host/OS/Ubuntu Linux-20.04", "Host/OS/Ubuntu Linux-22.04", "Host/OS/Ubuntu Linux-24.04", "Host/OS/Ubuntu Linux-25.04", "Host/OS/Ubuntu Linux-25.10");

  exit(0);
}

if (!get_kb_item("global_settings/vendor_unpatched")) exit(0, "Unpatched Vulnerabilities Detection not active.");
if (!get_kb_item("Host/local_checks_enabled")) audit(AUDIT_LOCAL_CHECKS_NOT_ENABLED);
if (empty_or_null(get_one_kb_item("Host/Debian/dpkg-l"))) audit(AUDIT_PACKAGE_LIST_MISSING);

include('linux_unpatched.inc');

var distro_constraints_array = {
  "Ubuntu Linux-16.04": {
    "package_manager": "dpkg-l",
    "constraints": [
      {
        "release": "16.04",
        "pkgs": [
          {"reference": "libxen-4.6"},
          {"reference": "libxen-dev"},
          {"reference": "libxenstore3.0"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.4-amd64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.4-arm64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.4-armhf"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.5-amd64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.5-arm64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.5-armhf"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.6-amd64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.6-arm64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.6-armhf"},
          {"reference": "xen-system-amd64"},
          {"reference": "xen-system-arm64"},
          {"reference": "xen-system-armhf"},
          {"reference": "xen-utils-4.6"},
          {"reference": "xen-utils-common"},
          {"reference": "xenstore-utils"}
        ]
      }
    ]
  },
  "Ubuntu Linux-18.04": {
    "package_manager": "dpkg-l",
    "constraints": [
      {
        "release": "18.04",
        "pkgs": [
          {"reference": "libxen-4.9"},
          {"reference": "libxen-dev"},
          {"reference": "libxenstore3.0"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.6-amd64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.6-arm64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.6-armhf"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.7-amd64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.7-arm64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.7-armhf"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.8-amd64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.8-arm64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.8-armhf"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.9-amd64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.9-arm64"},
          {"reference": "xen-hypervisor-4.9-armhf"},
          {"reference": "xen-system-amd64"},
          {"reference": "xen-system-arm64"},
          {"reference": "xen-system-armhf"},
          {"reference": "xen-utils-4.9"},
          {"reference": "xen-utils-common"},
          {"reference": "xenstore-utils"}
        ]
      }
    ]
  },
  "Ubuntu Linux-20.04": {
    "package_manager": "dpkg-l",
    "constraints": [
      {
        "release": "20.04",
        "pkgs": [
          {"reference": "xen"}
        ]
      }
    ]
  },
  "Ubuntu Linux-22.04": {
    "package_manager": "dpkg-l",
    "constraints": [
      {
        "release": "22.04",
        "pkgs": [
          {"reference": "xen"}
        ]
      }
    ]
  },
  "Ubuntu Linux-24.04": {
    "package_manager": "dpkg-l",
    "constraints": [
      {
        "release": "24.04",
        "pkgs": [
          {"reference": "xen"}
        ]
      }
    ]
  },
  "Ubuntu Linux-25.04": {
    "package_manager": "dpkg-l",
    "constraints": [
      {
        "release": "25.04",
        "pkgs": [
          {"reference": "xen"}
        ]
      }
    ]
  },
  "Ubuntu Linux-25.10": {
    "package_manager": "dpkg-l",
    "constraints": [
      {
        "release": "25.10",
        "pkgs": [
          {"reference": "xen"}
        ]
      }
    ]
  }
};

var distro_constraints_values = linux_unpatched::get_distro_constraints(distro_constraints_arr:distro_constraints_array);
if (empty_or_null(distro_constraints_values)) audit(AUDIT_HOST_NOT, 'affected');
var report = linux_unpatched::check_unpatched_constraints(distro_constraints_values:distro_constraints_values);

if (!empty_or_null(report))
{
  security_report_v4(
      port       : 0,
      severity   : SECURITY_WARNING,
      extra      : report
  );
  exit(0);
}
else
{
  audit(AUDIT_HOST_NOT, 'affected');
}

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21 May 2026 00:00Current
7.2High risk
Vulners AI Score7.2
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EPSS0.00113
3