CVE-2025-21828

System crash via flushing non-uploaded stations

Published Mar 6, 2025 · Updated Aug 5, 2026

Denial of service in Linux kernel mac80211 allows physically proximate attackers to crash affected systems over Wi-Fi. During failed station insertion after a station is pre-moved to AUTHORIZED, the cleanup path flushes it even though it was never uploaded to the driver. Reachability requires a mac80211 Wi-Fi configuration that can enter this state, including IBSS scenarios, and the documented consequence is a kernel crash.

CVSS severity8.8
High
EPSS probability0.22%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Denial of service in Linux kernel mac80211 allows physically proximate attackers to crash affected systems over Wi-Fi. During failed station insertion after a station is pre-moved to AUTHORIZED, the cleanup path flushes it even though it was never uploaded to the driver. Reachability requires a mac80211 Wi-Fi configuration that can enter this state, including IBSS scenarios, and the documented consequence is a kernel crash.

The record

CVE
CVE-2025-21828
Published
Mar 6, 2025
Updated
Aug 5, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
T1499.004
Attack vector
adjacent
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Mar 6, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 5, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=6.4
  2. Affected versionversion=d00800a289c9349bb659a698cbd7bc04521dc927 <9efb5531271fa7ebae993b2a33a705d9947c7ce6
  3. Affected versionversion=d00800a289c9349bb659a698cbd7bc04521dc927 <aa3ce3f8fafa0b8fb062f28024855ea8cb3f3450
  4. Affected versionversion=d00800a289c9349bb659a698cbd7bc04521dc927 <cd10b7fcb95a6a86c67adc54304c59a578ab16af
  5. Affected versionversion=d00800a289c9349bb659a698cbd7bc04521dc927 <cf21ef3d430847ba864bbc9b2774fffcc03ce321

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectoradjacent
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=6.4; version=d00800a289c9349bb659a698cbd7bc04521dc927 <9efb5531271fa7ebae993b2a33a705d9947c7ce6; version=d00800a289c9349bb659a698cbd7bc04521dc927 <aa3ce3f8fafa0b8fb062f28024855ea8cb3f3450; version=d00800a289c9349bb659a698cbd7bc04521dc927 <cd10b7fcb95a6a86c67adc54304c59a578ab16af; version=d00800a289c9349bb659a698cbd7bc04521dc927 <cf21ef3d430847ba864bbc9b2774fffcc03ce321

Published CVSS scores

5.5NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
8.8LinuxCVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

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No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectoradjacent
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

T1499.004Application or System Exploitation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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