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VulnerabilityAwaiting classification

CVE-2025-40252

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-12-04
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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: net: qlogic/qede: fix potential out-of-bounds read in qede_tpa_cont() and qede_tpa_end() The loops in 'qede_tpa_cont()' and 'qede_tpa_end()', iterate over 'cqe->len_list[]' using only a zero-length terminator as the stopping condition. If the terminator was missing or malformed, the loop could run past the end of the fixed-size array. Add an explicit bound check using ARRAY_SIZE() in both loops to prevent a potential out-of-bounds access. Found by Linux Verification Center (linuxtesting.org) with SVACE.

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

Out-of-bounds read vulnerability in qede network driver functions qede_tpa_cont() and qede_tpa_end() where loops iterate over cqe->len_list[] array using only a zero-length terminator as stopping condition, allowing malformed input to read past array bounds.

MitigationApply the kernel patch to add ARRAY_SIZE() bound checks in both functions to prevent out-of-bounds access to the len_list array.

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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/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. Verify qede network driver is present
    Check if qede module is loaded: `lsmod | grep qede` or check for qede in /sys/drivers/; for built-in drivers, check kernel config: `grep -i qede /boot/config-$(uname -r)` or check /proc/config.gz
    Affected if qede driver is loaded or compiled into the kernel and the kernel version is older than the patched version containing ARRAY_SIZE() bounds checks in qede_tpa_cont() and qede_tpa_end()
  2. Confirm kernel version
    Run `uname -r` to get the running kernel version, then compare against the version that includes the CVE-2025-40252 fix (the patch adding ARRAY_SIZE() bound checks)
    Affected if Kernel version is below the version that includes the explicit ARRAY_SIZE() bounds checking fix for the len_list array in qede_tpa_cont() and qede_tpa_end() functions
  3. Identify if TPA feature is enabled
    TPA (Tunneling Protocol Acceleration) is typically enabled via ethtool: `ethtool -k <interface> | grep tpa` or check if the driver reports TPA support in dmesg or driver info
    Affected if TPA feature is enabled on a network interface using the qede driver, as the vulnerable code paths in qede_tpa_cont() and qede_tpa_end() are only exercised when TPA is active
  4. Inspect driver source for vulnerable code pattern
    If kernel source is available, examine drivers/net/ethernet/qlogic/qede/qede_main.c: search for qede_tpa_cont and qede_tpa_end functions and verify whether they contain ARRAY_SIZE(len_list) bounds checks or rely solely on zero-length terminator
    Affected if The driver source code lacks explicit ARRAY_SIZE() bounds checking on cqe->len_list[] array in both qede_tpa_cont() and qede_tpa_end() functions, using only zero-termination as the loop exit condition

A system is affected if it runs a kernel with the qede driver loaded and TPA feature enabled, where the driver version predates the ARRAY_SIZE() bounds check fix in qede_tpa_cont() and qede_tpa_end() functions.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the kernel patch to add ARRAY_SIZE() bound checks in both functions to prevent out-of-bounds access to the len_list array.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Any Linux kernel version that includes the qede driver patch adding ARRAY_SIZE() bound checks in qede_tpa_cont() and qede_tpa_end() functions

  1. Identify the current running kernel version using `uname -r`
  2. Check if your Linux distribution has released a kernel update that includes the qede driver fix for CVE-2025-40252
  3. If a kernel update is available, update the kernel package using your distribution's package manager (e.g., `apt update && apt upgrade linux-image` for Debian/Ubuntu, `yum update kernel` for RHEL/CentOS, or `dnf update kernel` for Fedora)
  4. Reboot the system to load the updated kernel
  5. Verify the fix is applied by checking the kernel version and confirming the qede driver loaded successfully
Caveat Kernel updates may require system reboot and could introduce compatibility issues with custom kernel modules or specific hardware configurations

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
5.0 hours of engineering $860
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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-2025-40252 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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