How severe is CVE-2025-37996?

CVE-2025-37996 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.

Is CVE-2025-37996 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (3rd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2025-37996?

CVE-2025-37996 primarily affects Linux Linux Kernel. In total, 6 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2025-37996?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.

Does CVE-2025-37996 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?

Yes. CVE-2025-37996 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2025-16380.

When was CVE-2025-37996 published?

CVE-2025-37996 was published on 2025-05-29 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2025-37996

CVE-2025-37996 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux Linux Kernel with a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-908.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 5.5)
EPSS exploit prediction: 0% (3rd percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
EU (EUVD) id: EUVD-2025-16380
Weakness: CWE-908
Affected product: Linux Linux Kernel
Published: 2025-05-29
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: arm64: Fix uninitialized memcache pointer in user_mem_abort() Commit fce886a60207 ("KVM: arm64: Plumb the pKVM MMU in KVM") made the initialization of the local memcache variable in user_mem_abort() conditional, leaving a codepath where it is used uninitialized via kvm_pgtable_stage2_map(). This can fail on any path that requires a stage-2 allocation without transition via a permission fault or dirty logging. Fix this by making sure that memcache is always valid.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2025-37996?: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: arm64: Fix uninitialized memcache pointer in user_mem_abort() Commit fce886a60207 ("KVM: arm64: Plumb the pKVM MMU in KVM") made the initialization of the local memcache variable in user_mem_abort() conditional, leaving a codepath where it is used uninitialized via kvm_pgtable_stage2_map(). This can fail on any path that requires a stage-2 allocation without transition via a permission fault or dirty logging. Fix this by making sure that memcache is always valid.
How severe is CVE-2025-37996?: CVE-2025-37996 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.
Is CVE-2025-37996 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (3rd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2025-37996?: CVE-2025-37996 primarily affects Linux Linux Kernel. In total, 6 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2025-37996?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
Does CVE-2025-37996 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?: Yes. CVE-2025-37996 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2025-16380.
When was CVE-2025-37996 published?: CVE-2025-37996 was published on 2025-05-29 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (6)

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.15:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.15:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.15:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.15:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.15:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:*

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