#VU108241 Use-after-free in Linux kernel - CVE-2025-37738
Vulnerability identifier: #VU108241
Vulnerability risk: Low
CVSSv4.0: 5.9 [CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/U:Clear]
CVE-ID:
CWE-ID:
CWE-416
Exploitation vector: Local
Exploit availability: No
Vulnerable software:
Linux kernel
Operating systems & Components /
Operating system
Vendor: Linux Foundation
Description
The vulnerability allows a local user to escalate privileges on the system.
The vulnerability exists due to a use-after-free error within the ext4_xattr_inode_dec_ref_all() function in fs/ext4/xattr.c. A local user can escalate privileges on the system.
Mitigation
Install update from vendor's website.
Vulnerable software versions
Linux kernel: 5.15, 5.15 rc1, 5.15 rc2, 5.15 rc3, 5.15 rc4, 5.15 rc5, 5.15 rc6, 5.15 rc7, 5.15.0, 5.15.1, 5.15.2, 5.15.3, 5.15.4, 5.15.5, 5.15.6, 5.15.7, 5.15.8, 5.15.9, 5.15.10, 5.15.11, 5.15.12, 5.15.13, 5.15.14, 5.15.15, 5.15.16, 5.15.17, 5.15.18, 5.15.19, 5.15.20, 5.15.21, 5.15.22, 5.15.23, 5.15.24, 5.15.25, 5.15.26, 5.15.27, 5.15.28, 5.15.29, 5.15.30, 5.15.31, 5.15.32, 5.15.33, 5.15.34, 5.15.35, 5.15.36, 5.15.37, 5.15.38, 5.15.39, 5.15.40, 5.15.41, 5.15.42, 5.15.43, 5.15.44, 5.15.45, 5.15.46, 5.15.47, 5.15.48, 5.15.49, 5.15.50, 5.15.51, 5.15.52, 5.15.53, 5.15.54, 5.15.55, 5.15.56, 5.15.57, 5.15.58, 5.15.59, 5.15.60, 5.15.61, 5.15.62, 5.15.63, 5.15.64, 5.15.65, 5.15.66, 5.15.67, 5.15.68, 5.15.69, 5.15.70, 5.15.71, 5.15.72, 5.15.73, 5.15.74, 5.15.75, 5.15.76, 5.15.77, 5.15.78, 5.15.79, 5.15.80, 5.15.81, 5.15.82, 5.15.83, 5.15.84, 5.15.85, 5.15.86, 5.15.87, 5.15.88, 5.15.89, 5.15.90, 5.15.91, 5.15.92, 5.15.93, 5.15.94, 5.15.95, 5.15.96, 5.15.97, 5.15.98, 5.15.99, 5.15.100, 5.15.101, 5.15.102, 5.15.103, 5.15.104, 5.15.105, 5.15.106, 5.15.107, 5.15.108, 5.15.109, 5.15.110, 5.15.111, 5.15.112, 5.15.113, 5.15.114, 5.15.115, 5.15.116, 5.15.117, 5.15.118, 5.15.119, 5.15.120, 5.15.121, 5.15.122, 5.15.123, 5.15.124, 5.15.125, 5.15.126, 5.15.127, 5.15.128, 5.15.129, 5.15.130, 5.15.131, 5.15.132, 5.15.133, 5.15.134, 5.15.135, 5.15.136, 5.15.137, 5.15.138, 5.15.139, 5.15.140, 5.15.141, 5.15.142, 5.15.143, 5.15.144, 5.15.145, 5.15.146, 5.15.147, 5.15.148, 5.15.149, 5.15.150, 5.15.151, 5.15.152, 5.15.153, 5.15.154, 5.15.155, 5.15.156, 5.15.157, 5.15.158, 5.15.159, 5.15.160, 5.15.161, 5.15.162, 5.15.163, 5.15.164, 5.15.165, 5.15.166, 5.15.167, 5.15.168, 5.15.169, 5.15.170, 5.15.171, 5.15.172, 5.15.173, 5.15.174, 5.15.175, 5.15.176, 5.15.177, 5.15.178, 5.15.179, 5.15.180
External links
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/362a90cecd36e8a5c415966d0b75b04a0270e4dd
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/3bc6317033f365ce578eb6039445fb66162722fd
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6aff941cb0f7d0c897c3698ad2e30672709135e3
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/76c365fa7e2a8bb85f0190cdb4b8cdc99b2fdce3
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/836e625b03a666cf93ff5be328c8cb30336db872
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c8e008b60492cf6fd31ef127aea6d02fd3d314cd
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/cf9291a3449b04688b81e32621e88de8f4314b54
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/eb59cc31b6ea076021d14b04e7faab1636b87d0e
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f737418b6de31c962c7192777ee4018906975383
https://mirrors.edge.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v5.x/ChangeLog-5.15.181
Q & A
Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?
No. This vulnerability can be exploited locally. The attacker should have authentication credentials and successfully authenticate on the system.
Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?
No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability.
