#VU112208 NULL pointer dereference in Linux kernel - CVE-2025-38149

Vulnerability identifier: #VU112208

Vulnerability risk: Low

CVSSv4.0: 4.3 [CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/U:Clear]

CVE-ID: CVE-2025-38149

CWE-ID: CWE-476

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 perform a denial of service (DoS) attack.

The vulnerability exists due to NULL pointer dereference within the phy_detach() function in drivers/net/phy/phy_device.c. A local user can perform a denial of service (DoS) attack.

Mitigation
Install update from vendor's repository.

Vulnerable software versions

Linux kernel: All versions

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External links
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/034bc4a2a72dea2cfcaf24c6bae03c38ad5a0b87
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0795b05a59b1371b18ffbf09d385296b12e9f5d5
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/363fdf2777423ad346d781f09548cca14877f729
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ddc654e89ace723b78c34911c65243accbc9b75c

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Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?