Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
A race in the Linux exFAT filesystem can access a temporary object after its stack lifetime ends, corrupting kernel memory. A successful local attack could compromise confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Systems that do not process exFAT filesystems are less likely to reach the vulnerable path.
Executive priority
Prioritize affected systems that actively process exFAT, especially shared or sensitive hosts. Treat this as a high-priority kernel update, but current sources do not justify an internet-wide emergency response because exploitation is local and active exploitation is unconfirmed.
Technical view
CVE-2025-22036 is a CWE-416 use-after-free involving an on-stack buffer_head during exFAT get_block reads. A competing completion path may decrement the object after its caller has returned, corrupting reused stack memory. The kernel fix returns -EAGAIN so the caller falls back to a path using a folio-backed buffer_head.
Likely exposure
Exposure requires an affected Linux kernel and activity reaching the exFAT read path. The supplied record identifies affected releases beginning with 6.8 and lists later release boundaries, but its flattened version data is ambiguous. Confirm status through distribution backport information and inclusion of the cited commits.
Exploitation context
The CVSS 3.1 score is 7.8: local access, low complexity, low privileges, and no user interaction, with potentially high impact. The source bundle marks KEV false and provides no evidence of active exploitation or a public weaponized exploit.
Researcher notes
The vulnerable sequence crosses mpage_read_folio, do_mpage_readpage, exfat_get_block, bh_read, and asynchronous completion. Validation should focus on fix ancestry or vendor backport evidence rather than version-string comparison alone. The supplied affected-version representation is insufficient to state exact vulnerable ranges confidently.
Mitigation direction
- Install a vendor-supported kernel containing the cited exFAT fix or an equivalent backport.
- Confirm remediation against distribution advisories; package version numbers may not match upstream kernel versions.
- Until patched, reduce exFAT filesystem use on affected systems where operationally feasible.
- Follow vendor guidance for any additional mitigations or required reboots.
Validation and detection
- Record the running kernel and distribution package versions on systems using exFAT.
- Determine whether exFAT filesystems are mounted or processed on each candidate system.
- Verify the installed kernel contains one of the cited fixes or an equivalent vendor backport.
- After updating, reboot if required and confirm the remediated kernel is running.
- Review kernel logs for exFAT or buffer_head faults; their absence does not prove remediation.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-416: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2025-22036 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 7.8 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
SSVC decision data
CVSS vector scores
2 official scoresWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H1.85.9LinuxCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H15.9CISA-ADPVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
7.8HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Base CVSS 3.1 score
7HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Vulnerability timeline
Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.
- CVE reservedCVE Program
The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.
- CVE publishedCVE Program
The CVE record was published.
- CVE updatedCVE Program
The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.
ADP provider summaries
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/49b0a6ab8e528a0c1c50e37cef9b9c7c121365f2CVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f7447286363dc1e410bf30b87d75168f3519f9ccCVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f807a6bf2005740fa26b4f59c4a003dc966b9afdCVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1bb7ff4204b6d4927e982cd256286c09ed4fd8caCVE reference, Linux
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Use After Free
Use After Free represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.