CyberSecBulletin
CVE-2025-22085NVD status: Analyzed

Linux: Use After Free

Published Updated By the CyberSecBulletin desk

CVE-2025-22085 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. The record lists versions 0d6460b9d2a3ee380940bdf47680751ef91cb88e, 56ec8580be5174b2b9774066e60f1aad56d201db, edf6b543e81ba68c6dbac2499ab362098a5a9716 as the first without the flaw, so updating Linux to one of those releases or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.21% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.

Next patch cycle

High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.

What to do

  1. Update Linux to 0d6460b9d2a3ee380940bdf47680751ef91cb88e or 56ec8580be5174b2b9774066e60f1aad56d201db or edf6b543e81ba68c6dbac2499ab362098a5a9716 or 1d6a9e7449e2a0c1e2934eee7880ba8bd1e464cd, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
  2. Update Linux Kernel to 6.12.23 or 6.13.11 or 6.14.2, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.

Affected products and versions

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed in
LinuxLinux9cbed5aab5aeea420d0aa945733bf608449d44fb up to, but not including, 0d6460b9d2a3ee380940bdf47680751ef91cb88e; 9cbed5aab5aeea420d0aa945733bf608449d44fb up to, but not including, 56ec8580be5174b2b9774066e60f1aad56d201db; 9cbed5aab5aeea420d0aa945733bf608449d44fb up to, but not including, edf6b543e81ba68c6dbac2499ab362098a5a9716; 9cbed5aab5aeea420d0aa945733bf608449d44fb up to, but not including, 1d6a9e7449e2a0c1e2934eee7880ba8bd1e464cd; 6.120d6460b9d2a3ee380940bdf47680751ef91cb88e, 56ec8580be5174b2b9774066e60f1aad56d201db, edf6b543e81ba68c6dbac2499ab362098a5a9716, 1d6a9e7449e2a0c1e2934eee7880ba8bd1e464cd
LinuxLinux Kernel6.12 up to, but not including, 6.12.23; 6.13 up to, but not including, 6.13.11; 6.14 up to, but not including, 6.14.26.12.23, 6.13.11, 6.14.2

Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.

How the severity score breaks down

Attack vector
LocalThe attacker needs local access or must trick a user into running something.
Attack complexity
LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
Privileges required
LowA basic user account is enough.
User interaction
NoneNo action by a victim is required.
Scope
UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
Confidentiality
HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
Integrity
HighData or code can be modified at will.
Availability
HighThe component can be taken down completely.

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by CISA (ADP).

Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: RDMA/core: Fix use-after-free when rename device name Syzbot reported a slab-use-after-free with the following call trace: ================================================================== BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in nla_put+0xd3/0x150 lib/nlattr.c:1099 Read of size 5 at addr ffff888140ea1c60 by task syz.0.988/10025 CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 10025 Comm: syz.0.988 Not tainted 6.14.0-rc4-syzkaller-00859-gf77f12010f67 #0 Hardware name: Google Compute Engine, BIOS Google 02/12/2025 Call Trace: <TASK> __dump_stack lib/dump_stack.c:94 [inline] dump_stack_lvl+0x241/0x360 lib/dump_stack.c:120 print_address_description mm/kasan/report.c:408 [inline] print_report+0x16e/0x5b0 mm/kasan/report.c:521 kasan_report+0x143/0x180 mm/kasan/report.c:634 kasan_check_range+0x282/0x290 mm/kasan/generic.c:189 __asan_memcpy+0x29/0x70 mm/kasan/shadow.c:105 nla_put+0xd3/0x150 lib/nlattr.c:1099 nla_put_string include/net/netlink.h:1621 [inline] fill_nldev_handle+0x16e/0x200 drivers/infiniband/core/nldev.c:265 rdma_nl_notify_event+0x561/0xef0 drivers/infiniband/core/nldev.c:2857 ib_device_notify_register+0x22/0x230 drivers/infiniband/core/device.c:1344 ib_register_device+0x1292/0x1460 drivers/infiniband/core/device.c:1460 rxe_register_device+0x233/0x350 drivers/infiniband/sw/rxe/rxe_verbs.c:1540 rxe_net_add+0x74/0xf0 drivers/infiniband/sw/rxe/rxe_net.c:550 rxe_newlink+0xde/0x1a0 drivers/infiniband/sw/rxe/rxe.c:212 nldev_newlink+0x5ea/0x680 drivers/infiniband/core/nldev.c:1795 rdma_nl_rcv_skb drivers/infiniband/core/netlink.c:239 [inline] rdma_nl_rcv+0x6dd/0x9e0 drivers/infiniband/core/netlink.c:259 netlink_unicast_kernel net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1313 [inline] netlink_unicast+0x7f6/0x990 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1339 netlink_sendmsg+0x8de/0xcb0 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1883 sock_sendmsg_nosec net/socket.c:709 [inline] __sock_sendmsg+0x221/0x270 net/socket.c:724 ____sys_sendmsg+0x53a/0x860 net/socket.c:2564 ___sys_sendmsg net/socket.c:2618 [inline] __sys_sendmsg+0x269/0x350 net/socket.c:2650 do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/common.c:52 [inline] do_syscall_64+0xf3/0x230 arch/x86/entry/common.c:83 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f RIP: 0033:0x7f42d1b8d169 Code: ff ff c3 66 2e 0f 1f 84 00 00 00 00 00 0f 1f 40 00 48 89 f8 48 ... RSP: 002b:00007f42d2960038 EFLAGS: 00000246 ORIG_RAX: 000000000000002e RAX: ffffffffffffffda RBX: 00007f42d1da6320 RCX: 00007f42d1b8d169 RDX: 0000000000000000 RSI: 00004000000002c0 RDI: 000000000000000c RBP: 00007f42d1c0e2a0 R08: 0000000000000000 R09: 0000000000000000 R10: 0000000000000000 R11: 0000000000000246 R12: 0000000000000000 R13: 0000000000000000 R14: 00007f42d1da6320 R15: 00007ffe399344a8 </TASK> Allocated by task 10025: kasan_save_stack mm/kasan/common.c:47 [inline] kasan_save_track+0x3f/0x80 mm/kasan/common.c:68 poison_kmalloc_redzone mm/kasan/common.c:377 [inline] __kasan_kmalloc+0x98/0xb0 mm/kasan/common.c:394 kasan_kmalloc include/linux/kasan.h:260 [inline] __do_kmalloc_node mm/slub.c:4294 [inline] __kmalloc_node_track_caller_noprof+0x28b/0x4c0 mm/slub.c:4313 __kmemdup_nul mm/util.c:61 [inline] kstrdup+0x42/0x100 mm/util.c:81 kobject_set_name_vargs+0x61/0x120 lib/kobject.c:274 dev_set_name+0xd5/0x120 drivers/base/core.c:3468 assign_name drivers/infiniband/core/device.c:1202 [inline] ib_register_device+0x178/0x1460 drivers/infiniband/core/device.c:1384 rxe_register_device+0x233/0x350 drivers/infiniband/sw/rxe/rxe_verbs.c:1540 rxe_net_add+0x74/0xf0 drivers/infiniband/sw/rxe/rxe_net.c:550 rxe_newlink+0xde/0x1a0 drivers/infiniband/sw/rxe/rxe.c:212 nldev_newlink+0x5ea/0x680 drivers/infiniband/core/nldev.c:1795 rdma_nl_rcv_skb drivers/infiniband/core/netlink.c:239 [inline] rdma_nl_rcv+0x6dd/0x9e0 drivers/infiniband/core/netlink.c:259 netlink_unicast_kernel net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1313 [inline] netlink_unicast+0x7f6/0x990 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1339 netlink_sendmsg+0x8de/0xcb0 net ---truncated---

Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.

The underlying weakness: Use After Free

The product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. At some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. Any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory belongs to the code that operates on the new pointer.

How developers prevent this class of flaw

  • Choose a language that provides automatic memory management.
  • When freeing pointers, be sure to set them to NULL once they are freed. However, the utilization of multiple or complex data structures may lower the usefulness of this strategy.

More Use After Free vulnerabilities (CWE-416)

Timeline

  1. CVE record published.
  2. CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
  3. Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).

References

Recent Use After Free vulnerabilities

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