CVE-2025-21458 in Snapdragon Auto
Summary
by MITRE • 08/06/2025
Memory corruption when IOCTL interface is called to map and unmap buffers simultaneously.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/20/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2025-21458 represents a critical memory corruption issue within kernel-level device drivers that handle IOCTL (Input/Output Control) operations for buffer management. This flaw manifests when the driver interface processes simultaneous requests to map and unmap memory buffers, creating a race condition scenario that can lead to arbitrary code execution or system instability. The vulnerability resides in the driver's handling of concurrent buffer operations, where proper synchronization mechanisms fail to prevent overlapping memory access patterns during the mapping and unmapping process. Such memory corruption vulnerabilities are particularly dangerous because they can be exploited to escalate privileges or cause denial of service conditions that compromise the entire system integrity.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability stems from inadequate thread synchronization and memory management within the IOCTL handler implementation. When multiple threads or processes attempt to simultaneously invoke buffer mapping and unmapping operations, the driver fails to properly coordinate these competing requests. This lack of proper mutual exclusion allows memory pointers to become invalid or corrupted during the transition between mapped and unmapped states, potentially leading to heap corruption or stack overflow conditions. The vulnerability specifically affects the driver's internal buffer management structures where memory addresses are manipulated without proper locking mechanisms, creating opportunities for attackers to manipulate memory contents through carefully crafted IOCTL calls. According to CWE classification, this maps to CWE-119: Improper Restriction of Operations within the Buffer and CWE-367: Time-of-Check to Time-of-Use, as the driver fails to maintain consistent state during buffer operations.
The operational impact of CVE-2025-21458 extends beyond simple system crashes, presenting significant security risks that can be leveraged by malicious actors. An attacker with access to the affected device interface could potentially execute arbitrary code with kernel-level privileges, bypassing standard security boundaries and gaining complete control over the affected system. The vulnerability is particularly concerning in environments where device drivers are exposed to untrusted input or where multiple concurrent processes interact with the same device. This could occur in embedded systems, network appliances, or any platform where kernel-mode drivers handle external input through IOCTL interfaces. The timing aspect of the vulnerability means that exploitation is most likely when multiple buffer operations are initiated in rapid succession, making it potentially exploitable through automated attack scripts or by leveraging legitimate application behavior that triggers concurrent buffer operations.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2025-21458 should focus on implementing proper synchronization mechanisms within the driver code and ensuring that all buffer operations are properly protected against concurrent access. System administrators should immediately apply vendor patches or updates that address the synchronization issues in the IOCTL handler implementation. The recommended approach includes implementing mutex locks or semaphores around buffer mapping and unmapping operations to prevent race conditions, as well as adding proper validation of buffer parameters before processing. Additionally, memory management routines should be reviewed to ensure proper handling of memory pointers and to implement bounds checking that prevents buffer overflows during the mapping process. Organizations should also consider implementing runtime protections such as kernel address space layout randomization and exploit mitigation techniques that can detect or prevent exploitation attempts. From an ATT&CK perspective, this vulnerability aligns with techniques such as T1068: Exploitation for Privilege Escalation and T1543.003: Create or Modify System Process, as it provides a pathway for attackers to gain elevated privileges through kernel exploitation. Regular security assessments of device drivers and input validation should be implemented to identify similar synchronization issues that may exist in other system components.