Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: perf/x86/intel: KVM: Mask...
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
perf/x86/intel: KVM: Mask PEBS_ENABLE loaded for guest with vCPU's value.
When generating the MSR_IA32_PEBS_ENABLE value that will be loaded on
VM-Entry to a KVM guest, mask the value with the vCPU's desired PEBS_ENABLE
value. Consulting only the host kernel's host vs. guest masks results in
running the guest with PEBS enabled even when the guest doesn't want to use
PEBS. Because KVM uses perf events to proxy the guest virtual PMU, simply
looking at exclude_host can't differentiate between events created by host
userspace, and events created by KVM on behalf of the guest.
Running the guest with PEBS unexpectedly enabled typically manifests as
crashes due to a near-infinite stream of #PFs. E.g. if the guest hasn't
written MSR_IA32_DS_AREA, the CPU will hit page faults on address '0' when
trying to record PEBS events.
The issue is most easily reproduced by running perf kvm top from before
commit 7b100989b4f6 ("perf evlist: Remove __evlist__add_default") (after
which, perf kvm top effectively stopped using PEBS). The userspace side
of perf creates a guest-only PEBS event, which intel_guest_get_msrs()
misconstrues a guest-owned PEBS event.
Arguably, this is a userspace bug, as enabling PEBS on guest-only events
simply cannot work, and userspace can kill VMs in many other ways (there
is no danger to the host). However, even if this is considered to be bad
userspace behavior, there's zero downside to perf/KVM restricting PEBS to
guest-owned events.
Note, commit 854250329c02 ("KVM: x86/pmu: Disable guest PEBS temporarily
in two rare situations") fixed the case where host userspace is profiling
KVM and userspace, but missed the case where userspace is profiling only
KVM.
Impact
CVE-2025-37936 has a CVSS score of 5.5 (Medium). The vector is requires local access, low privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. No fixed version is listed yet, so configuration controls and monitoring matter more in the interim.
Affected versions
Security releases
Kodem intelligence
Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.
Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2025-37936? CVE-2025-37936 is a medium-severity security vulnerability. No fixed version is listed yet.
- How severe is CVE-2025-37936? CVE-2025-37936 has a CVSS score of 5.5 (Medium). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2025-37936? No fixed version is listed for CVE-2025-37936 yet. Monitor the advisory for updates and apply mitigations in the interim.
- Is CVE-2025-37936 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2025-37936 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
- What actually determines whether CVE-2025-37936 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.