dbcve.org
Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2025-38699

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-09-04
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.4.297 / 5.10.241 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
Zero-click Patch available

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
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: scsi: bfa: Double-free fix When the bfad_im_probe() function fails during initialization, the memory pointed to by bfad->im is freed without setting bfad->im to NULL. Subsequently, during driver uninstallation, when the state machine enters the bfad_sm_stopping state and calls the bfad_im_probe_undo() function, it attempts to free the memory pointed to by bfad->im again, thereby triggering a double-free vulnerability. Set bfad->im to NULL if probing fails.

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
How this class of weakness works · CWE-415

The same block of memory is freed twice, corrupting the allocator's bookkeeping in ways an attacker can shape toward code execution. It usually stems from tangled ownership of a pointer. The fix is clear, single ownership of each allocation and clearing pointers once they are freed.

General guidance for the double free class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →

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
Linux KernelOperating system
Affected:>= 2.6.33, < 5.4.297>= 5.5, < 5.10.241>= 5.11, < 5.15.190>= 5.16, < 6.1.149>= 6.2, < 6.6.103>= 6.7, < 6.12.43>= 6.13, < 6.15.11>= 6.16, < 6.16.2= 2.6.32
Debian LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 11.0

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

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

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 5.4.297 / 5.10.241 / 5.15.190 or later
Fixed in 5.4.2975.10.2415.15.190
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to one of: Linux Kernel 5.4.297+, 5.10.241+, 5.15.190+, 6.1.149+, or the latest stable 6.x release. For Debian 11, install the latest Debian-provided kernel update.

  1. Identify your current kernel version using `uname -r`
  2. Determine which version range your kernel falls into based on the affected versions list
  3. For kernels >= 2.6.33 and < 5.4.297: Upgrade to kernel version 5.4.297 or later
  4. For kernels >= 5.5 and < 5.10.241: Upgrade to kernel version 5.10.241 or later
  5. For kernels >= 5.11 and < 5.15.190: Upgrade to kernel version 5.15.190 or later
  6. For kernels >= 5.16 and < 6.1.149: Upgrade to kernel version 6.1.149 or later
  7. For Debian 11 (Bullseye): Install the latest kernel update from Debian security repositories using `apt update && apt upgrade linux-image-*`
  8. Reboot the system into the updated kernel
Caveat Minor risk: Upgrading kernel major versions may require rebuilding third-party kernel modules. Ensure compatibility of critical drivers with the target kernel version before production deployment.

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

We can perform the upgrade in your staging environment and verify nothing breaks — typical engagement from $1,950. Get the upgrade done

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-38699 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2025-38699 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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