Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: guest_memfd: Remove...
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
KVM: guest_memfd: Remove bindings on memslot deletion when gmem is dying
When unbinding a memslot from a guest_memfd instance, remove the bindings
even if the guest_memfd file is dying, i.e. even if its file refcount has
gone to zero. If the memslot is freed before the file is fully released,
nullifying the memslot side of the binding in kvm_gmem_release() will
write to freed memory, as detected by syzbot+KASAN:
==================================================================
BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in kvm_gmem_release+0x176/0x440 virt/kvm/guest_memfd.c:353
Write of size 8 at addr ffff88807befa508 by task syz.0.17/6022
CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 6022 Comm: syz.0.17 Not tainted syzkaller #0 PREEMPT(full)
Hardware name: Google Google Compute Engine/Google Compute Engine, BIOS Google 10/02/2025
Call Trace:
dump_stack_lvl+0x189/0x250 lib/dump_stack.c:120
print_address_description mm/kasan/report.c:378 [inline]
print_report+0xca/0x240 mm/kasan/report.c:482
kasan_report+0x118/0x150 mm/kasan/report.c:595
kvm_gmem_release+0x176/0x440 virt/kvm/guest_memfd.c:353
__fput+0x44c/0xa70 fs/file_table.c:468
task_work_run+0x1d4/0x260 kernel/task_work.c:227
resume_user_mode_work include/linux/resume_user_mode.h:50 [inline]
exit_to_user_mode_loop+0xe9/0x130 kernel/entry/common.c:43
exit_to_user_mode_prepare include/linux/irq-entry-common.h:225 [inline]
syscall_exit_to_user_mode_work include/linux/entry-common.h:175 [inline]
syscall_exit_to_user_mode include/linux/entry-common.h:210 [inline]
do_syscall_64+0x2bd/0xfa0 arch/x86/entry/syscall_64.c:100
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f
RIP: 0033:0x7fbeeff8efc9
Allocated by task 6023:
kasan_save_stack mm/kasan/common.c:56 [inline]
kasan_save_track+0x3e/0x80 mm/kasan/common.c:77
poison_kmalloc_redzone mm/kasan/common.c:397 [inline]
__kasan_kmalloc+0x93/0xb0 mm/kasan/common.c:414
kasan_kmalloc include/linux/kasan.h:262 [inline]
__kmalloc_cache_noprof+0x3e2/0x700 mm/slub.c:5758
kmalloc_noprof include/linux/slab.h:957 [inline]
kzalloc_noprof include/linux/slab.h:1094 [inline]
kvm_set_memory_region+0x747/0xb90 virt/kvm/kvm_main.c:2104
kvm_vm_ioctl_set_memory_region+0x6f/0xd0 virt/kvm/kvm_main.c:2154
kvm_vm_ioctl+0x957/0xc60 virt/kvm/kvm_main.c:5201
vfs_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:51 [inline]
__do_sys_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:597 [inline]
__se_sys_ioctl+0xfc/0x170 fs/ioctl.c:583
do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/syscall_64.c:63 [inline]
do_syscall_64+0xfa/0xfa0 arch/x86/entry/syscall_64.c:94
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f
Freed by task 6023:
kasan_save_stack mm/kasan/common.c:56 [inline]
kasan_save_track+0x3e/0x80 mm/kasan/common.c:77
kasan_save_free_info+0x46/0x50 mm/kasan/generic.c:584
poison_slab_object mm/kasan/common.c:252 [inline]
__kasan_slab_free+0x5c/0x80 mm/kasan/common.c:284
kasan_slab_free include/linux/kasan.h:234 [inline]
slab_free_hook mm/slub.c:2533 [inline]
slab_free mm/slub.c:6622 [inline]
kfree+0x19a/0x6d0 mm/slub.c:6829
kvm_set_memory_region+0x9c4/0xb90 virt/kvm/kvm_main.c:2130
kvm_vm_ioctl_set_memory_region+0x6f/0xd0 virt/kvm/kvm_main.c:2154
kvm_vm_ioctl+0x957/0xc60 virt/kvm/kvm_main.c:5201
vfs_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:51 [inline]
__do_sys_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:597 [inline]
__se_sys_ioctl+0xfc/0x170 fs/ioctl.c:583
do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/syscall_64.c:63 [inline]
do_syscall_64+0xfa/0xfa0 arch/x86/entry/syscall_64.c:94
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f
Deliberately don't acquire filemap invalid lock when the file is dying as
the lifecycle of f_mapping is outside the purview of KVM. Dereferencing
the mapping is probably fine, but there's no need to invalidate anything
as memslot deletion is responsible for zapping SPTEs, and the only code
that can access the dying file is kvm_gmem_release(), whose core code is
mutual
---truncated---
Impact
CVE-2025-40274 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-2025-40274? CVE-2025-40274 is a high-severity security vulnerability. No fixed version is listed yet.
- How severe is CVE-2025-40274? CVE-2025-40274 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-2025-40274? No fixed version is listed for CVE-2025-40274 yet. Monitor the advisory for updates and apply mitigations in the interim.
- Is CVE-2025-40274 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2025-40274 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-2025-40274 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.