Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net/mlx5e: Remove skb...
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
net/mlx5e: Remove skb secpath if xfrm state is not found
Hardware returns a unique identifier for a decrypted packet's xfrm
state, this state is looked up in an xarray. However, the state might
have been freed by the time of this lookup.
Currently, if the state is not found, only a counter is incremented.
The secpath (sp) extension on the skb is not removed, resulting in
sp->len becoming 0.
Subsequently, functions like __xfrm_policy_check() attempt to access
fields such as xfrm_input_state(skb)->xso.type (which dereferences
sp->xvec[sp->len - 1]) without first validating sp->len. This leads to
a crash when dereferencing an invalid state pointer.
This patch prevents the crash by explicitly removing the secpath
extension from the skb if the xfrm state is not found after hardware
decryption. This ensures downstream functions do not operate on a
zero-length secpath.
BUG: unable to handle page fault for address: ffffffff000002c8
#PF: supervisor read access in kernel mode
#PF: error_code(0x0000) - not-present page
PGD 282e067 P4D 282e067 PUD 0
Oops: Oops: 0000 [#1] SMP
CPU: 12 UID: 0 PID: 0 Comm: swapper/12 Not tainted 6.15.0-rc7_for_upstream_min_debug_2025_05_27_22_44 #1 NONE
Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (Q35 + ICH9, 2009), BIOS rel-1.13.0-0-gf21b5a4aeb02-prebuilt.qemu.org 04/01/2014
RIP: 0010:__xfrm_policy_check+0x61a/0xa30
Code: b6 77 7f 83 e6 02 74 14 4d 8b af d8 00 00 00 41 0f b6 45 05 c1 e0 03 48 98 49 01 c5 41 8b 45 00 83 e8 01 48 98 49 8b 44 c5 10 <0f> b6 80 c8 02 00 00 83 e0 0c 3c 04 0f 84 0c 02 00 00 31 ff 80 fa
RSP: 0018:ffff88885fb04918 EFLAGS: 00010297
RAX: ffffffff00000000 RBX: 0000000000000002 RCX: 0000000000000000
RDX: 0000000000000002 RSI: 0000000000000002 RDI: 0000000000000000
RBP: ffffffff8311af80 R08: 0000000000000020 R09: 00000000c2eda353
R10: ffff88812be2bbc8 R11: 000000001faab533 R12: ffff88885fb049c8
R13: ffff88812be2bbc8 R14: 0000000000000000 R15: ffff88811896ae00
FS: 0000000000000000(0000) GS:ffff8888dca82000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000
CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033
CR2: ffffffff000002c8 CR3: 0000000243050002 CR4: 0000000000372eb0
DR0: 0000000000000000 DR1: 0000000000000000 DR2: 0000000000000000
DR3: 0000000000000000 DR6: 00000000fffe0ff0 DR7: 0000000000000400
Call Trace:
? try_to_wake_up+0x108/0x4c0
? udp4_lib_lookup2+0xbe/0x150
? udp_lib_lport_inuse+0x100/0x100
? __udp4_lib_lookup+0x2b0/0x410
__xfrm_policy_check2.constprop.0+0x11e/0x130
udp_queue_rcv_one_skb+0x1d/0x530
udp_unicast_rcv_skb+0x76/0x90
__udp4_lib_rcv+0xa64/0xe90
ip_protocol_deliver_rcu+0x20/0x130
ip_local_deliver_finish+0x75/0xa0
ip_local_deliver+0xc1/0xd0
? ip_protocol_deliver_rcu+0x130/0x130
ip_sublist_rcv+0x1f9/0x240
? ip_rcv_finish_core+0x430/0x430
ip_list_rcv+0xfc/0x130
__netif_receive_skb_list_core+0x181/0x1e0
netif_receive_skb_list_internal+0x200/0x360
? mlx5e_build_rx_skb+0x1bc/0xda0 [mlx5_core]
gro_receive_skb+0xfd/0x210
mlx5e_handle_rx_cqe_mpwrq+0x141/0x280 [mlx5_core]
mlx5e_poll_rx_cq+0xcc/0x8e0 [mlx5_core]
? mlx5e_handle_rx_dim+0x91/0xd0 [mlx5_core]
mlx5e_napi_poll+0x114/0xab0 [mlx5_core]
__napi_poll+0x25/0x170
net_rx_action+0x32d/0x3a0
? mlx5_eq_comp_int+0x8d/0x280 [mlx5_core]
? notifier_call_chain+0x33/0xa0
handle_softirqs+0xda/0x250
irq_exit_rcu+0x6d/0xc0
common_interrupt+0x81/0xa0
Impact
CVE-2025-38590 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-2025-38590? CVE-2025-38590 is a medium-severity security vulnerability. No fixed version is listed yet.
- How severe is CVE-2025-38590? CVE-2025-38590 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-2025-38590? No fixed version is listed for CVE-2025-38590 yet. Monitor the advisory for updates and apply mitigations in the interim.
- Is CVE-2025-38590 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2025-38590 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-2025-38590 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.