CVE-2025-38517

CVE-2025-38517 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-476.

Key facts

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: lib/alloc_tag: do not acquire non-existent lock in alloc_tag_top_users() alloc_tag_top_users() attempts to lock alloc_tag_cttype->mod_lock even when the alloc_tag_cttype is not allocated because: 1) alloc tagging is disabled because mem profiling is disabled (!alloc_tag_cttype) 2) alloc tagging is enabled, but not yet initialized (!alloc_tag_cttype) 3) alloc tagging is enabled, but failed initialization (!alloc_tag_cttype or IS_ERR(alloc_tag_cttype)) In all cases, alloc_tag_cttype is not allocated, and therefore alloc_tag_top_users() should not attempt to acquire the semaphore. This leads to a crash on memory allocation failure by attempting to acquire a non-existent semaphore: Oops: general protection fault, probably for non-canonical address 0xdffffc000000001b: 0000 [#3] SMP KASAN NOPTI KASAN: null-ptr-deref in range [0x00000000000000d8-0x00000000000000df] CPU: 2 UID: 0 PID: 1 Comm: systemd Tainted: G D 6.16.0-rc2 #1 VOLUNTARY Tainted: [D]=DIE Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS 1.16.2-debian-1.16.2-1 04/01/2014 RIP: 0010:down_read_trylock+0xaa/0x3b0 Code: d0 7c 08 84 d2 0f 85 a0 02 00 00 8b 0d df 31 dd 04 85 c9 75 29 48 b8 00 00 00 00 00 fc ff df 48 8d 6b 68 48 89 ea 48 c1 ea 03 <80> 3c 02 00 0f 85 88 02 00 00 48 3b 5b 68 0f 85 53 01 00 00 65 ff RSP: 0000:ffff8881002ce9b8 EFLAGS: 00010016 RAX: dffffc0000000000 RBX: 0000000000000070 RCX: 0000000000000000 RDX: 000000000000001b RSI: 000000000000000a RDI: 0000000000000070 RBP: 00000000000000d8 R08: 0000000000000001 R09: ffffed107dde49d1 R10: ffff8883eef24e8b R11: ffff8881002cec20 R12: 1ffff11020059d37 R13: 00000000003fff7b R14: ffff8881002cec20 R15: dffffc0000000000 FS: 00007f963f21d940(0000) GS:ffff888458ca6000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000 CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033 CR2: 00007f963f5edf71 CR3: 000000010672c000 CR4: 0000000000350ef0 Call Trace: <TASK> codetag_trylock_module_list+0xd/0x20 alloc_tag_top_users+0x369/0x4b0 __show_mem+0x1cd/0x6e0 warn_alloc+0x2b1/0x390 __alloc_frozen_pages_noprof+0x12b9/0x21a0 alloc_pages_mpol+0x135/0x3e0 alloc_slab_page+0x82/0xe0 new_slab+0x212/0x240 ___slab_alloc+0x82a/0xe00 </TASK> As David Wang points out, this issue became easier to trigger after commit 780138b12381 ("alloc_tag: check mem_profiling_support in alloc_tag_init"). Before the commit, the issue occurred only when it failed to allocate and initialize alloc_tag_cttype or if a memory allocation fails before alloc_tag_init() is called. After the commit, it can be easily triggered when memory profiling is compiled but disabled at boot. To properly determine whether alloc_tag_init() has been called and its data structures initialized, verify that alloc_tag_cttype is a valid pointer before acquiring the semaphore. If the variable is NULL or an error value, it has not been properly initialized. In such a case, just skip and do not attempt to acquire the semaphore. [[email protected]: v3]

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2025-38517?
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: lib/alloc_tag: do not acquire non-existent lock in alloc_tag_top_users() alloc_tag_top_users() attempts to lock alloc_tag_cttype->mod_lock even when the alloc_tag_cttype is not allocated because: 1) alloc tagging is disabled because mem profiling is disabled (!alloc_tag_cttype) 2) alloc tagging is enabled, but not yet initialized (!alloc_tag_cttype) 3) alloc tagging is enabled, but failed initialization (!alloc_tag_cttype or IS_ERR(alloc_tag_cttype)) In all cases, alloc_tag_cttype is not allocated, and therefore alloc_tag_top_users() should not attempt to acquire the semaphore. This leads to a crash on memory allocation failure by attempting to acquire a non-existent semaphore: Oops: general protection fault, probably for non-canonical address 0xdffffc000000001b: 0000 [#3] SMP KASAN NOPTI KASAN: null-ptr-deref in range [0x00000000000000d8-0x00000000000000df] CPU: 2 UID: 0 PID: 1 Comm: systemd Tainted: G D 6.16.0-rc2 #1 VOLUNTARY Tainted: [D]=DIE Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS 1.16.2-debian-1.16.2-1 04/01/2014 RIP: 0010:down_read_trylock+0xaa/0x3b0 Code: d0 7c 08 84 d2 0f 85 a0 02 00 00 8b 0d df 31 dd 04 85 c9 75 29 48 b8 00 00 00 00 00 fc ff df 48 8d 6b 68 48 89 ea 48 c1 ea 03 <80> 3c 02 00 0f 85 88 02 00 00 48 3b 5b 68 0f 85 53 01 00 00 65 ff RSP: 0000:ffff8881002ce9b8 EFLAGS: 00010016 RAX: dffffc0000000000 RBX: 0000000000000070 RCX: 0000000000000000 RDX: 000000000000001b RSI: 000000000000000a RDI: 0000000000000070 RBP: 00000000000000d8 R08: 0000000000000001 R09: ffffed107dde49d1 R10: ffff8883eef24e8b R11: ffff8881002cec20 R12: 1ffff11020059d37 R13: 00000000003fff7b R14: ffff8881002cec20 R15: dffffc0000000000 FS: 00007f963f21d940(0000) GS:ffff888458ca6000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000 CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033 CR2: 00007f963f5edf71 CR3: 000000010672c000 CR4: 0000000000350ef0 Call Trace: <TASK> codetag_trylock_module_list+0xd/0x20 alloc_tag_top_users+0x369/0x4b0 __show_mem+0x1cd/0x6e0 warn_alloc+0x2b1/0x390 __alloc_frozen_pages_noprof+0x12b9/0x21a0 alloc_pages_mpol+0x135/0x3e0 alloc_slab_page+0x82/0xe0 new_slab+0x212/0x240 ___slab_alloc+0x82a/0xe00 </TASK> As David Wang points out, this issue became easier to trigger after commit 780138b12381 ("alloc_tag: check mem_profiling_support in alloc_tag_init"). Before the commit, the issue occurred only when it failed to allocate and initialize alloc_tag_cttype or if a memory allocation fails before alloc_tag_init() is called. After the commit, it can be easily triggered when memory profiling is compiled but disabled at boot. To properly determine whether alloc_tag_init() has been called and its data structures initialized, verify that alloc_tag_cttype is a valid pointer before acquiring the semaphore. If the variable is NULL or an error value, it has not been properly initialized. In such a case, just skip and do not attempt to acquire the semaphore. [[email protected]: v3]
How severe is CVE-2025-38517?
CVE-2025-38517 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-2025-38517 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-2025-38517?
CVE-2025-38517 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-2025-38517?
Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
Does CVE-2025-38517 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?
Yes. CVE-2025-38517 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2025-25081.
When was CVE-2025-38517 published?
CVE-2025-38517 was published on 2025-08-16 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (6)

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