Local kernel-memory disclosure via debugfs length misuse
Published Oct 1, 2025 · Updated Aug 19, 2026
Out-of-bounds read in the i40e driver in affected Linux kernels allows local users to read kernel memory through a debugfs file. The netdev_ops read handler passes snprintf's would-have-written length to copy_to_user after truncation, causing the copy to extend beyond its kzalloc buffer. Access requires the i40e interface and readable debugfs entries; debugfs is root-only by default, and a successful over-read exposes kernel memory or crashes the host.
Summary
What happened
Out-of-bounds read in the i40e driver in affected Linux kernels allows local users to read kernel memory through a debugfs file. The netdev_ops read handler passes snprintf's would-have-written length to copy_to_user after truncation, causing the copy to extend beyond its kzalloc buffer. Access requires the i40e interface and readable debugfs entries; debugfs is root-only by default, and a successful over-read exposes kernel memory or crashes the host.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2025-39901
- Published
- Oct 1, 2025
- Updated
- Aug 19, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- CWE-125, T1005
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Oct 1, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 19, 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.
- Affected versionversion=02e9c290814cc143ceccecb14eac3e7a05da745e <6fd8b30a5cb84d74015bc651799d1ab1e047946c
- Affected versionversion=02e9c290814cc143ceccecb14eac3e7a05da745e <70d3dad7d5ad077965d7a63eed1942b7ba49bfb4
- Affected versionversion=02e9c290814cc143ceccecb14eac3e7a05da745e <7d190963b80f4cd99d7008615600aa7cc993c6ba
- Affected versionversion=02e9c290814cc143ceccecb14eac3e7a05da745e <9fcdb1c3c4ba134434694c001dbff343f1ffa319
- Affected versionversion=02e9c290814cc143ceccecb14eac3e7a05da745e <ef40d9411469306e524e7887c51b709377e6ef65
- Affected versionversion=3.12
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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.
Public exploit references
No public exploit references are available in this record.
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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