Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ext4: detect invalid...
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
ext4: detect invalid INLINE_DATA + EXTENTS flag combination
syzbot reported a BUG_ON in ext4_es_cache_extent() when opening a verity
file on a corrupted ext4 filesystem mounted without a journal.
The issue is that the filesystem has an inode with both the INLINE_DATA
and EXTENTS flags set:
EXT4-fs error (device loop0): ext4_cache_extents:545: inode #15:
comm syz.0.17: corrupted extent tree: lblk 0 < prev 66
Investigation revealed that the inode has both flags set:
DEBUG: inode 15 - flag=1, i_inline_off=164, has_inline=1, extents_flag=1
This is an invalid combination since an inode should have either:
- INLINE_DATA: data stored directly in the inode
- EXTENTS: data stored in extent-mapped blocks
Having both flags causes ext4_has_inline_data() to return true, skipping
extent tree validation in __ext4_iget(). The unvalidated out-of-order
extents then trigger a BUG_ON in ext4_es_cache_extent() due to integer
underflow when calculating hole sizes.
Fix this by detecting this invalid flag combination early in ext4_iget()
and rejecting the corrupted inode.
Impact
CVE-2025-40167 has a CVSS score of 7.8 (High). The vector is requires local access, no privileges required, and user interaction required. 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.
Already deployed Kodem?
See it in your environmentNew to Kodem? Get a demo →Remediation advice
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2025-40167? CVE-2025-40167 is a high-severity security vulnerability. No fixed version is listed yet.
- How severe is CVE-2025-40167? CVE-2025-40167 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-2025-40167? No fixed version is listed for CVE-2025-40167 yet. Monitor the advisory for updates and apply mitigations in the interim.
- Is CVE-2025-40167 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2025-40167 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-2025-40167 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.