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CVE Record

CVE-2025-22128: wifi: ath12k: Clear affinity hint before calling ath12k_pci_free_irq() in error path

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: ath12k: Clear affinity hint before calling ath12k_pci_free_irq() in error path If a shared IRQ is used by the driver due to platform limitation, then the IRQ affinity hint is set right after the allocation of IRQ vectors in ath12k_pci_msi_alloc(). This does no harm unless one of the functions requesting the IRQ fails and attempt to free the IRQ. This may end up with a warning from the IRQ core that is expecting the affinity hint to be cleared before freeing the IRQ: kernel/irq/manage.c: /* make sure affinity_hint is cleaned up */ if (WARN_ON_ONCE(desc->affinity_hint)) desc->affinity_hint = NULL; So to fix this issue, clear the IRQ affinity hint before calling ath12k_pci_free_irq() in the error path. The affinity will be cleared once again further down the error path due to code organization, but that does no harm.

UnknownCVSS not scoredNot KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysislow

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

CVE-2025-22128 is a Linux kernel ath12k Wi-Fi driver cleanup bug. On platforms where the driver uses a shared IRQ, an error path can free an IRQ before clearing its affinity hint, triggering a kernel warning. The source bundle does not show remote code execution, data theft, or active exploitation.

Executive priority

Treat this as routine kernel maintenance unless your fleet relies heavily on ath12k PCI Wi-Fi on affected Linux kernels. There is no source-supported evidence of active exploitation or high-impact compromise, but unpatched kernel driver defects should still be resolved through normal update cycles.

Technical view

The Linux ath12k PCI path sets an IRQ affinity hint after MSI vector allocation. If an IRQ request later fails, ath12k_pci_free_irq() may run while desc->affinity_hint is still set, causing the IRQ core WARN_ON_ONCE cleanup warning. Stable commits fix this by clearing the affinity hint before freeing IRQs in the error path.

Likely exposure

Exposure appears limited to Linux systems using the Qualcomm ath12k PCI Wi-Fi driver on platforms constrained to shared IRQ behavior. The provided affected data names Linux kernel versions and commits but lacks CPEs, package names, distributions, or precise deployment guidance.

Exploitation context

The provided sources do not indicate active exploitation, KEV listing, public exploit activity, or an attacker-controlled exploitation path. The described failure occurs during driver IRQ setup error handling and appears primarily reliability or correctness related based on available evidence.

Researcher notes

The record describes a narrow IRQ cleanup ordering issue in ath12k PCI error handling. Impact evidence is incomplete: no CVSS, CWE, CPE, exploit status, or distribution-specific advisories are included. Validate by code lineage and downstream backports rather than relying only on broad kernel version labels.

Mitigation direction

  • Apply Linux kernel or distribution updates containing the referenced stable fixes.
  • Prioritize systems with ath12k PCI Wi-Fi hardware or enabled ath12k modules.
  • Check vendor or distribution advisories for backported kernel package versions.
  • If updates are unavailable, follow vendor guidance for affected Wi-Fi driver exposure.
  • Avoid assuming a fix based only on upstream version numbers in downstream kernels.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory Linux kernel versions and distribution kernel package build numbers.
  • Identify systems using Qualcomm ath12k PCI Wi-Fi hardware or driver modules.
  • Confirm whether vendor kernels include the referenced stable commits or equivalent backports.
  • Review kernel logs for ath12k IRQ setup failures or IRQ affinity warnings.
  • Track CVE status through CVE Program and Linux stable references.
Prepared
Confidence
medium
Sources
5

Public sources used

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

Potential ATT&CK relevance

Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Unknown
CVSS
Not scored
Known Exploited
No
Published
Official CVE source material

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.

0CVSS vectors
3Timeline events
0ADP providers
4Source links

Vulnerability timeline

Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.

  1. CVE reservedCVE Program

    The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.

  2. CVE publishedCVE Program

    The CVE record was published.

  3. CVE updatedCVE Program

    The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.

Source materials

Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
LinuxLinuxa3012f206d07fa62b5c2e384cbc3a81a4dbba3c9, a3012f206d07fa62b5c2e384cbc3a81a4dbba3c9, a3012f206d07fa62b5c2e384cbc3a81a4dbba3c9unaffected
LinuxLinux6.8, 0, 6.12.35, 6.14.2, 6.15affected
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

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