dbcve.org
Cuda ToolkitApplication · Nvidia

CVE-2025-23338

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-09-24
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 13.0.0 or later.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges

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
NVIDIA CUDA Toolkit for all platforms contains a vulnerability in nvdisasm where a user may cause an out-of-bounds write by running nvdisasm on a malicious ELF file. A successful exploit of this vulnerability may lead to denial of service.

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 · moderate confidence

NVIDIA's nvdisasm tool (part of CUDA Toolkit) contains an out-of-bounds write vulnerability when parsing maliciously crafted ELF files. An attacker can trigger this by supplying a specially crafted ELF file to nvdisasm, causing a denial of service through memory corruption.

MitigationDo not run nvdisasm on untrusted or unverified ELF files. Apply NVIDIA's official patch/updates to the CUDA Toolkit when released. Consider input validation or sandboxing for nvdisasm operations if processing external files is necessary.

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

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Cuda ToolkitApplication
Affected:< 13.0.0

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
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/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. Locate nvdisasm executable
    Search for nvdisasm in common CUDA Toolkit installation paths such as /usr/local/cuda/bin/nvdisasm, or use 'which nvdisasm' or 'find /usr -name nvdisasm' command
    Affected if nvdisasm is found on the system
  2. Determine CUDA Toolkit version
    Run 'nvcc --version' to display the CUDA Toolkit version, or check the directory name containing nvdisasm (e.g., cuda_12.x.x)
    Affected if The CUDA Toolkit version is reported as < 13.0.0
  3. Check nvdisasm binary version
    Run 'nvdisasm --version' or 'nvdisasm -v' to display the nvdisasm binary version directly
    Affected if The reported version is < 13.0.0 or the version cannot be determined (older toolkit)
  4. Inspect recent ELF file processing
    Review any logs, scripts, or automation that invoke nvdisasm with external input files; check for command lines like 'nvdisasm <file>' processing untrusted ELF files
    Affected if nvdisasm is being run on ELF files from untrusted or unverified sources

The environment is affected if CUDA Toolkit version is below 13.0.0 AND nvdisasm is used to parse ELF files from untrusted sources.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 13.0.0 or later
Fixed in 13.0.0
Interim mitigation

Do not run nvdisasm on untrusted or unverified ELF files. Apply NVIDIA's official patch/updates to the CUDA Toolkit when released. Consider input validation or sandboxing for nvdisasm operations if processing external files is necessary.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

CUDA Toolkit 13.0.0

  1. 1. Identify the current installed CUDA Toolkit version by running 'nvcc --version' or checking the installation directory
  2. 2. Download CUDA Toolkit version 13.0.0 or later from the official NVIDIA website (developer.nvidia.com/cuda-downloads)
  3. 3. Uninstall the existing CUDA Toolkit version if installed via package manager, or navigate to the installation directory
  4. 4. Install the downloaded CUDA Toolkit 13.0.0 (or newer) using the appropriate installer for your operating system
  5. 5. After installation, verify that nvdisasm has been updated by running 'nvdisasm --version' to confirm the new version is in place
  6. 6. Test that legitimate CUDA binaries can still be disassembled properly with the updated nvdisasm
Caveat CUDA Toolkit 13.0 is a major version upgrade that may introduce API changes; verify that existing CUDA applications and workflows are compatible before deploying to production environments

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Cuda Toolkit Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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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-2025-23338 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data