Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
A race during startup of two Linux UARTLite serial devices can use an incompletely initialized driver and crash the kernel. The direct business risk is device or service downtime, especially on embedded or hardware-oriented Linux systems using multiple UARTLite instances.
Executive priority
Prioritize affected embedded and operational systems where an unexpected reboot or startup failure has material consequences. Treat general-purpose systems without UARTLite hardware as lower priority after confirming non-exposure. Remediate through supported kernel updates rather than relying solely on the race being difficult to reproduce.
Technical view
Concurrent uartlite probes may race during uart_register_driver initialization. One probe can reach ulite_assign and uart_add_one_port before uart_driver is fully initialized, causing a null-pointer dereference and kernel panic. The upstream correction registers the UART driver during module initialization so registration completes before probing.
Likely exposure
Exposure appears limited to affected Linux kernels with the uartlite driver and at least two UARTLite device instances probing concurrently. Systems without this driver or hardware configuration are unlikely to encounter the documented condition. The supplied affected-version data is broad and insufficient for precise package-level conclusions.
Exploitation context
The CVSS 3.1 score is 7.8 and describes local, low-privilege access with no user interaction. However, the sources document a probe-time race and kernel panic, not a practical attacker-controlled technique. The CVE is not listed as KEV, and the bundle provides no evidence of active exploitation.
Researcher notes
The documented failure is a concurrency-driven null dereference during device probing. The supplied version ranges and repeated commit identifier are not sufficiently clear to map every distribution build. No CWE is supplied. Researchers should verify backport status from kernel or distribution changelogs and avoid inferring confidentiality or integrity impact solely from the CVSS vector.
Mitigation direction
- Install a vendor-supported kernel containing the applicable upstream UARTLite registration fix.
- Check Linux distribution advisories and package changelogs for CVE-2025-38262 coverage.
- Prioritize embedded systems that use multiple UARTLite serial-device instances.
- Where upgrades are delayed, consult vendor guidance for configuration-specific mitigations.
Validation and detection
- Inventory kernel versions and determine whether the uartlite driver is built or loaded.
- Identify systems whose hardware description exposes multiple UARTLite device instances.
- Confirm the installed kernel includes the applicable referenced stable commit or vendor backport.
- Review boot logs for uartlite probe failures, null dereferences, or uart_add_one_port panics.
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
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CVE-2025-38262 mapping review
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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.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe 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:H1.85.9LinuxVulnerability 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
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/5015eed450005bab6e5cb6810f7a62eab0434fc4CVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9c905fdbba68a6d73d39a6b7de9b9f0d6c46df87CVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6db06aaea07bb7c8e33a425cf7b98bf29ee6056eCVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8e958d10dd0ce5ae674cce460db5c9ca3f25243bCVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/685d29f2c5057b32c7b1b46f2a7d303b926c8f72CVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f5e4229d94792b40e750f30c92bcf7a3107c72efCVE reference, Linux
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6bd697b5fc39fd24e2aa418c7b7d14469f550a93CVE reference, Linux
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2025/10/msg00008.htmlCVE reference, CVE
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.