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CVE-2025-38520

5.5 · MEDIUM
Published Aug 16, 2025 linux CWE-667 EPSS 0.11% (2th pctl)

Overview

CVE-2025-38520 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting linux linux_kernel. It was published on August 16, 2025 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 5.5 (MEDIUM).

This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 5.5, rated MEDIUM. It requires local or adjacent network access to exploit. Some level of privileges is required for exploitation.

Technical Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

drm/amdkfd: Don't call mmput from MMU notifier callback

If the process is exiting, the mmput inside mmu notifier callback from

compactd or fork or numa balancing could release the last reference

of mm struct to call exit_mmap and free_pgtable, this triggers deadlock

with below backtrace.

The deadlock will leak kfd process as mmu notifier release is not called

and cause VRAM leaking.

The fix is to take mm reference mmget_non_zero when adding prange to the

deferred list to pair with mmput in deferred list work.

If prange split and add into pchild list, the pchild work_item.mm is not

used, so remove the mm parameter from svm_range_unmap_split and

svm_range_add_child.

The backtrace of hung task:

INFO: task python:348105 blocked for more than 64512 seconds.

Call Trace:

__schedule+0x1c3/0x550

schedule+0x46/0xb0

rwsem_down_write_slowpath+0x24b/0x4c0

unlink_anon_vmas+0xb1/0x1c0

free_pgtables+0xa9/0x130

exi

Remediation

Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from linux. Update linux_kernel to the latest patched version. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.

Affected Products

Vendor Product Versions Status
linux linux_kernel >= 5.15.49, < 5.16 Affected

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2025-38520?

CVE-2025-38520 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting linux linux_kernel. It was published on August 16, 2025 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 5.5 (MEDIUM).

How severe is CVE-2025-38520?

This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 5.5, rated MEDIUM. It requires local or adjacent network access to exploit. Some level of privileges is required for exploitation.

How do I fix or remediate CVE-2025-38520?

Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from linux. Update linux_kernel to the latest patched version. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.

How can CyberStrike help with CVE-2025-38520?

CyberStrike's AI-powered security agents can automatically detect CVE-2025-38520 across your infrastructure using autonomous pentesting, DAST scanning, and HackBrowser. The platform continuously monitors for known vulnerabilities and provides actionable remediation guidance prioritized by real-world exploitability.