Vulnerability Database

373,546

Total vulnerabilities in the database

CVE-2025-38172 — linux / linux_kernel

Use After Free

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

erofs: avoid using multiple devices with different type

For multiple devices, both primary and extra devices should be the same type. erofs_init_device has already guaranteed that if the primary is a file-backed device, extra devices should also be regular files.

However, if the primary is a block device while the extra device is a file-backed device, erofs_init_device will get an ENOTBLK, which is not treated as an error in erofs_fc_get_tree, and that leads to an UAF:

erofs_fc_get_tree get_tree_bdev_flags(erofs_fc_fill_super) erofs_read_superblock erofs_init_device // sbi->dif0 is not inited yet, // return -ENOTBLK deactivate_locked_super free(sbi) if (err is -ENOTBLK) sbi->dif0.file = filp_open() // sbi UAF

So if -ENOTBLK is hitted in erofs_init_device, it means the primary device must be a block device, and the extra device is not a block device. The error can be converted to -EINVAL.

  • Published: Jul 3, 2025
  • Updated: Nov 21, 2025
  • CVE: CVE-2025-38172
  • Severity: High
  • Exploit:
  • CISA KEV:

CVSS v3:

  • Severity: High
  • Score: 7.8
  • AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CWEs:

Frequently Asked Questions

A security vulnerability is a weakness in software, hardware, or configuration that can be exploited to compromise confidentiality, integrity, or availability. Many vulnerabilities are tracked as CVEs (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures), which provide a standardized identifier so teams can coordinate patching, mitigation, and risk assessment across tools and vendors.

CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) estimates technical severity, but it doesn't automatically equal business risk. Prioritize using context like internet exposure, affected asset criticality, known exploitation (proof-of-concept or in-the-wild), and whether compensating controls exist. A "Medium" CVSS on an exposed, production system can be more urgent than a "Critical" on an isolated, non-production host.

A vulnerability is the underlying weakness. An exploit is the method or code used to take advantage of it. A zero-day is a vulnerability that is unknown to the vendor or has no publicly available fix when attackers begin using it. In practice, risk increases sharply when exploitation becomes reliable or widespread.

Recurring findings usually come from incomplete Asset Discovery, inconsistent patch management, inherited images, and configuration drift. In modern environments, you also need to watch the software supply chain: dependencies, containers, build pipelines, and third-party services can reintroduce the same weakness even after you patch a single host. Unknown or unmanaged assets (often called Shadow IT) are a common reason the same issues resurface.

Use a simple, repeatable triage model: focus first on externally exposed assets, high-value systems (identity, VPN, email, production), vulnerabilities with known exploits, and issues that enable remote code execution or privilege escalation. Then enforce patch SLAs and track progress using consistent metrics so remediation is steady, not reactive.

SynScan combines attack surface monitoring and continuous security auditing to keep your inventory current, flag high-impact vulnerabilities early, and help you turn raw findings into a practical remediation plan.