VMware ESXi, Workstation, and Fusion Information Disclosure
CVE-2025-22226 is a medium-severity out-of-bounds read vulnerability in ESXi, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 6.0 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an attacker with administrator privileges, without any action from a user. The record lists versions ESXi80U3d-24585383, ESXi80U2d-24585300, ESXi70U3s-24585291 as the first without the flaw, so updating ESXi to one of those releases or later removes the exposure. CISA added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue on March 4, 2025, which means attacks have been observed in the wild.
Attackers are already exploiting this vulnerability, according to CISA.
What to do
- Update ESXi to ESXi80U3d-24585383 or ESXi80U2d-24585300 or ESXi70U3s-24585291, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
- Update VMware Workstation to 17.6.3 or a later version.
- Update VMware Fusion to 13.6.3 or a later version.
- CISA's required action: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.
- Read the advisory on support.broadcom.com for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| ESXi | ESXi | 8.0 up to, but not including, ESXi80U3d-24585383; 8.0 up to, but not including, ESXi80U2d-24585300; 7.0 up to, but not including, ESXi70U3s-24585291 | ESXi80U3d-24585383, ESXi80U2d-24585300, ESXi70U3s-24585291 |
| VMware Workstation | VMware Workstation | 17.x up to, but not including, 17.6.3 | 17.6.3 |
| VMware Fusion | VMware Fusion | 13.x up to, but not including, 13.6.3 | 13.6.3 |
| VMware Cloud Foundation | VMware Cloud Foundation | 5.x, 4.5.x | Not stated |
| VMware Telco Cloud Platform | VMware Telco Cloud Platform | 5.x, 4.x, 3.x, 2.x | Not stated |
| VMware Telco Cloud Infrastructure | VMware Telco Cloud Infrastructure | 3.x, 2.x | Not stated |
| VMware | Cloud Foundation | Not specified in the record | Not stated |
| VMware | Fusion | 13.0.0 up to, but not including, 13.6.3 | 13.6.3 |
| VMware | Telco Cloud Infrastructure | 2.2; 2.5; 2.7; 3.0 | Not stated |
| VMware | Telco Cloud Platform | 2.0; 2.5; 2.7; 3.0; 4.0; 4.0.1; 5.0 | Not stated |
| VMware | Workstation | 17.0 up to, but not including, 17.6.3 | 17.6.3 |
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
- HighAdministrator-level access is required first.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- ChangedThe attack can reach beyond the vulnerable component into other systems.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- NoneNothing can be modified.
- Availability
- NoneAvailability is not affected.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N. Scored by NVD.
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.1 | High | CNA (vmware.com) |
| CVSS 3.1 | 6.0 | Medium | NVD |
Official description
VMware ESXi, Workstation, and Fusion contain an information disclosure vulnerability due to an out-of-bounds read in HGFS. A malicious actor with administrative privileges to a virtual machine may be able to exploit this issue to leak memory from the vmx process.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Out-of-bounds Read
The product reads data past the end, or before the beginning, of the intended buffer.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Use a language that provides appropriate memory abstractions.
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- Added to CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: active, automatable: no, technical impact: partial).
- Deadline for US federal agencies to remediate, set by CISA.
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Third-party and government advisories
- cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2025-22226US Government Resource
Recent Out-of-bounds Read vulnerabilities
- 8.1 High severity
- 7.1 High severity
- 7.1 High severity
- 7.1 High severity
- 7.1 High severity
- 7.1 High severity
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