Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: tipc: Fix use-after-free in...
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
tipc: Fix use-after-free in tipc_conn_close().
syzbot reported a null-ptr-deref in tipc_conn_close() during netns
dismantle. [0]
tipc_topsrv_stop() iterates tipc_net(net)->topsrv->conn_idr and calls
tipc_conn_close() for each tipc_conn.
The problem is that tipc_conn_close() is called after releasing the
IDR lock.
At the same time, there might be tipc_conn_recv_work() running and it
could call tipc_conn_close() for the same tipc_conn and release its
last ->kref.
Once we release the IDR lock in tipc_topsrv_stop(), there is no
guarantee that the tipc_conn is alive.
Let's hold the ref before releasing the lock and put the ref after
tipc_conn_close() in tipc_topsrv_stop().
[0]:
BUG: KASAN: use-after-free in tipc_conn_close+0x122/0x140 net/tipc/topsrv.c:165
Read of size 8 at addr ffff888099305a08 by task kworker/u4:3/435
CPU: 0 PID: 435 Comm: kworker/u4:3 Not tainted 4.19.204-syzkaller #0
Hardware name: Google Google Compute Engine/Google Compute Engine, BIOS Google 01/01/2011
Workqueue: netns cleanup_net
Call Trace:
__dump_stack lib/dump_stack.c:77 [inline]
dump_stack+0x1fc/0x2ef lib/dump_stack.c:118
print_address_description.cold+0x54/0x219 mm/kasan/report.c:256
kasan_report_error.cold+0x8a/0x1b9 mm/kasan/report.c:354
kasan_report mm/kasan/report.c:412 [inline]
__asan_report_load8_noabort+0x88/0x90 mm/kasan/report.c:433
tipc_conn_close+0x122/0x140 net/tipc/topsrv.c:165
tipc_topsrv_stop net/tipc/topsrv.c:701 [inline]
tipc_topsrv_exit_net+0x27b/0x5c0 net/tipc/topsrv.c:722
ops_exit_list+0xa5/0x150 net/core/net_namespace.c:153
cleanup_net+0x3b4/0x8b0 net/core/net_namespace.c:553
process_one_work+0x864/0x1570 kernel/workqueue.c:2153
worker_thread+0x64c/0x1130 kernel/workqueue.c:2296
kthread+0x33f/0x460 kernel/kthread.c:259
ret_from_fork+0x24/0x30 arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:415
Allocated by task 23:
kmem_cache_alloc_trace+0x12f/0x380 mm/slab.c:3625
kmalloc include/linux/slab.h:515 [inline]
kzalloc include/linux/slab.h:709 [inline]
tipc_conn_alloc+0x43/0x4f0 net/tipc/topsrv.c:192
tipc_topsrv_accept+0x1b5/0x280 net/tipc/topsrv.c:470
process_one_work+0x864/0x1570 kernel/workqueue.c:2153
worker_thread+0x64c/0x1130 kernel/workqueue.c:2296
kthread+0x33f/0x460 kernel/kthread.c:259
ret_from_fork+0x24/0x30 arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:415
Freed by task 23:
__cache_free mm/slab.c:3503 [inline]
kfree+0xcc/0x210 mm/slab.c:3822
tipc_conn_kref_release net/tipc/topsrv.c:150 [inline]
kref_put include/linux/kref.h:70 [inline]
conn_put+0x2cd/0x3a0 net/tipc/topsrv.c:155
process_one_work+0x864/0x1570 kernel/workqueue.c:2153
worker_thread+0x64c/0x1130 kernel/workqueue.c:2296
kthread+0x33f/0x460 kernel/kthread.c:259
ret_from_fork+0x24/0x30 arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:415
The buggy address belongs to the object at ffff888099305a00
which belongs to the cache kmalloc-512 of size 512
The buggy address is located 8 bytes inside of
512-byte region [ffff888099305a00, ffff888099305c00)
The buggy address belongs to the page:
page:ffffea000264c140 count:1 mapcount:0 mapping:ffff88813bff0940 index:0x0
flags: 0xfff00000000100(slab)
raw: 00fff00000000100 ffffea00028b6b88 ffffea0002cd2b08 ffff88813bff0940
raw: 0000000000000000 ffff888099305000 0000000100000006 0000000000000000
page dumped because: kasan: bad access detected
Memory state around the buggy address:
ffff888099305900: fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb
ffff888099305980: fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc
ffff888099305a00: fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb
^
ffff888099305a80: fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb
ffff888099305b00: fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb fb
Impact
Memory is accessed after it has been freed, leading to undefined behavior in native code. Typical impact: memory corruption, crash, or potential code execution.
CVE-2025-38464 has a CVSS score of 7.8 (High). 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-2025-38464? CVE-2025-38464 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability. No fixed version is listed yet. Memory is accessed after it has been freed, leading to undefined behavior in native code.
- How severe is CVE-2025-38464? CVE-2025-38464 has a CVSS score of 7.8 (High). 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-2025-38464? No fixed version is listed for CVE-2025-38464 yet. Monitor the advisory for updates and apply mitigations in the interim.
- Is CVE-2025-38464 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2025-38464 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-2025-38464 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.