Missing AuthenticationWeakness · CWE-306

CVE-2025-1272

HIGH · 7.7 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-02-18
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
77/100
Remediation priority · High

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
The Linux Kernel lockdown mode for kernel versions starting on 6.12 and above for Fedora Linux has the lockdown mode disabled without any warning. This may allow an attacker to gain access to sensitive information such kernel memory mappings, I/O ports, BPF and kprobes. Additionally unsigned modules can be loaded, leading to execution of untrusted code breaking breaking any Secure Boot protection. This vulnerability affects only Fedora Linux.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

The Linux Kernel lockdown mode is disabled by default on Fedora Linux for kernel versions 6.12 and above without any warning. Lockdown mode is a security feature that restricts access to sensitive kernel functionality. With it disabled, attackers can access kernel memory mappings, I/O ports, BPF, and kprobes, and can load unsigned kernel modules, bypassing Secure Boot protections.

MitigationEnable kernel lockdown mode by adding 'lockdown=confidentiality' or 'lockdown=integrity' to the kernel command line, and ensure Secure Boot is properly enabled in UEFI firmware to enforce module signature verification.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
High
User interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify the distribution
    Run 'cat /etc/os-release' or 'cat /etc/fedora-release' to confirm the system is Fedora Linux
    Affected if The system is not Fedora Linux - this vulnerability is specific to Fedora
  2. Check the kernel version
    Run 'uname -r' or 'cat /proc/version' to obtain the running kernel version
    Affected if Kernel version is 6.12 or higher (for example, 6.12.5-200.fc40.x86_64)
  3. Verify lockdown mode status
    Read '/sys/kernel/security/lockdown' - look for '[none]' in the output which indicates lockdown is disabled, or check for '[integrity]' or '[confidentiality]' which indicate it is enabled
    Affected if The output shows '[none]' for the current lockdown state, meaning lockdown mode is disabled
  4. Check Secure Boot enforcement
    Run 'mokutil --sb-state' to see if UEFI Secure Boot is enabled; also check boot loader config in '/boot/loader/entries/' or '/boot/efi/EFI/fedora/' for 'lockdown=' kernel parameter
    Affected if Secure Boot is disabled, or the kernel command line does not include 'lockdown=integrity' or 'lockdown=confidentiality'

A system is affected if it runs Fedora Linux with kernel version 6.12 or higher AND lockdown mode shows '[none]' (disabled) in /sys/kernel/security/lockdown.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Enable kernel lockdown mode by adding 'lockdown=confidentiality' or 'lockdown=integrity' to the kernel command line, and ensure Secure Boot is properly enabled in UEFI firmware to enforce module signature verification.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,640
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Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-1272 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-1272 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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