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CVE Record

CVE-2025-71229: wifi: rtw88: Fix alignment fault in rtw_core_enable_beacon()

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: rtw88: Fix alignment fault in rtw_core_enable_beacon() rtw_core_enable_beacon() reads 4 bytes from an address that is not a multiple of 4. This results in a crash on some systems. Do 1 byte reads/writes instead. Unable to handle kernel paging request at virtual address ffff8000827e0522 Mem abort info: ESR = 0x0000000096000021 EC = 0x25: DABT (current EL), IL = 32 bits SET = 0, FnV = 0 EA = 0, S1PTW = 0 FSC = 0x21: alignment fault Data abort info: ISV = 0, ISS = 0x00000021, ISS2 = 0x00000000 CM = 0, WnR = 0, TnD = 0, TagAccess = 0 GCS = 0, Overlay = 0, DirtyBit = 0, Xs = 0 swapper pgtable: 4k pages, 48-bit VAs, pgdp=0000000005492000 [ffff8000827e0522] pgd=0000000000000000, p4d=10000001021d9403, pud=10000001021da403, pmd=100000011061c403, pte=00780000f3200f13 Internal error: Oops: 0000000096000021 [#1] SMP Modules linked in: [...] rtw88_8822ce rtw88_8822c rtw88_pci rtw88_core [...] CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 73 Comm: kworker/u32:2 Tainted: G W 6.17.9 #1-NixOS VOLUNTARY Tainted: [W]=WARN Hardware name: FriendlyElec NanoPC-T6 LTS (DT) Workqueue: phy0 rtw_c2h_work [rtw88_core] pstate: 60400009 (nZCv daif +PAN -UAO -TCO -DIT -SSBS BTYPE=--) pc : rtw_pci_read32+0x18/0x40 [rtw88_pci] lr : rtw_core_enable_beacon+0xe0/0x148 [rtw88_core] sp : ffff800080cc3ca0 x29: ffff800080cc3ca0 x28: ffff0001031fc240 x27: ffff000102100828 x26: ffffd2cb7c9b4088 x25: ffff0001031fc2c0 x24: ffff000112fdef00 x23: ffff000112fdef18 x22: ffff000111c29970 x21: 0000000000000001 x20: 0000000000000001 x19: ffff000111c22040 x18: 0000000000000000 x17: 0000000000000000 x16: 0000000000000000 x15: 0000000000000000 x14: 0000000000000000 x13: 0000000000000000 x12: 0000000000000000 x11: 0000000000000000 x10: 0000000000000000 x9 : ffffd2cb6507c090 x8 : 0000000000000000 x7 : 0000000000000000 x6 : 0000000000000000 x5 : 0000000000000000 x4 : 0000000000000000 x3 : 0000000000000000 x2 : 0000000000007f10 x1 : 0000000000000522 x0 : ffff8000827e0522 Call trace: rtw_pci_read32+0x18/0x40 [rtw88_pci] (P) rtw_hw_scan_chan_switch+0x124/0x1a8 [rtw88_core] rtw_fw_c2h_cmd_handle+0x254/0x290 [rtw88_core] rtw_c2h_work+0x50/0x98 [rtw88_core] process_one_work+0x178/0x3f8 worker_thread+0x208/0x418 kthread+0x120/0x220 ret_from_fork+0x10/0x20 Code: d28fe202 8b020000 f9524400 8b214000 (b9400000) ---[ end trace 0000000000000000 ]---

UnknownCVSS not scoredNot KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

CVE-2025-71229 is a Linux kernel rtw88 Wi-Fi driver flaw that can crash some systems because the driver performs an unaligned 4-byte access. The published evidence points to availability impact, not data theft or privilege escalation.

Executive priority

Treat as a targeted stability issue. Patch affected Linux fleets through normal kernel maintenance, faster for embedded, appliance, or remote systems where Wi-Fi driver crashes could disrupt service.

Technical view

The issue is in rtw_core_enable_beacon(). It reads 4 bytes from an address not aligned to a 4-byte boundary, causing alignment faults on some architectures. Kernel stable fixes change the operation to byte reads and writes.

Likely exposure

Exposure is likely limited to Linux systems using the rtw88 Wi-Fi driver path, including modules shown for rtw88_core, rtw88_pci, and rtw88_8822ce/8822c. Applicability depends on kernel version, hardware, architecture, and distribution backports.

Exploitation context

The source bundle does not show active exploitation, KEV listing, public exploit code, or remote attack details. The supplied trace demonstrates a kernel crash during driver workqueue activity on an affected system.

Researcher notes

The record lacks CVSS, CWE, and exploitability detail. The strongest evidence is the kernel trace and stable commit set. Analysis should avoid expanding impact beyond kernel crash availability unless additional vendor advisories provide more detail.

Mitigation direction

  • Apply vendor or distribution kernel updates containing the referenced stable fixes.
  • Prioritize Linux systems using rtw88 Wi-Fi hardware or modules.
  • Check vendor guidance for supported workaround options if patching is delayed.
  • Avoid direct wrangler or deployment assumptions; this is kernel maintenance, not application remediation.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory hosts for loaded rtw88_core, rtw88_pci, or related rtw88 modules.
  • Compare running kernel packages against vendor advisories and stable fix backports.
  • Review crash logs for alignment faults in rtw_core_enable_beacon() or rtw_pci_read32().
  • Confirm updated kernels include the byte read/write fix from stable commits.
Prepared
Confidence
medium
Sources
7

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

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.

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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
6Source 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
LinuxLinuxad6741b1e0449ba8f4eb41dc28e269dc20ab9219, ad6741b1e0449ba8f4eb41dc28e269dc20ab9219, ad6741b1e0449ba8f4eb41dc28e269dc20ab9219, ad6741b1e0449ba8f4eb41dc28e269dc20ab9219, ad6741b1e0449ba8f4eb41dc28e269dc20ab9219unaffected
LinuxLinux6.5, 0, 6.6.125, 6.12.72, 6.18.11, 6.19.1, 7.0affected
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.