CVE-2025-59616 in Snapdragon
Summary
by MITRE • 07/07/2026
Memory Corruption when processing multiple IOCTL calls with the same buffer file descriptor input due to accessing already freed memory.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/07/2026
This vulnerability represents a critical memory corruption issue that occurs within kernel-mode drivers when handling multiple input/output control commands with identical buffer file descriptor references. The flaw manifests when the driver processes sequential ioctl operations where the same buffer file descriptor is reused across different calls, leading to improper memory management practices that result in accessing memory that has already been freed. Such scenarios typically arise in device driver implementations where buffer lifecycle management is not properly synchronized across concurrent or sequential ioctl operations.
The technical root cause stems from inadequate validation of buffer reference states and improper handling of memory deallocation timing within the driver's ioctl processing pipeline. When multiple ioctl calls are executed with identical file descriptor inputs, the driver fails to maintain proper reference counting or state tracking mechanisms that would prevent access to deallocated memory regions. This memory corruption vulnerability can be categorized under CWE-415 as double free errors or CWE-476 as null pointer dereference conditions, depending on the specific implementation details and execution context. The flaw essentially creates a race condition where memory deallocation occurs before subsequent access attempts, violating fundamental memory safety principles that are critical for system stability and security.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple system crashes or hangs, potentially enabling privilege escalation attacks when exploited by malicious actors who can control the ioctl parameters and timing of buffer reuse. An attacker could leverage this weakness to execute arbitrary code within kernel space, bypassing standard security mechanisms such as address space layout randomization and kernel address space protection. The vulnerability's exploitation potential aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068 which involves local privilege escalation through kernel exploits, making it particularly dangerous in environments where users have the ability to submit ioctl commands to vulnerable device drivers. System stability is severely compromised as the memory corruption can cause unpredictable behavior including system crashes, data corruption, or complete system lockups that may require manual rebooting.
Mitigation strategies must focus on implementing robust buffer lifecycle management within driver code, including proper reference counting mechanisms, explicit memory state validation before access operations, and ensuring that deallocated memory regions remain inaccessible until all potential references are resolved. Drivers should enforce strict synchronization mechanisms around buffer usage across multiple ioctl calls and implement comprehensive input validation that prevents reuse of already freed resources. Security patches typically involve adding memory safety checks that verify buffer states before processing, implementing proper cleanup procedures that prevent premature deallocation, and ensuring thread-safe operations when handling shared buffer resources. Organizations should conduct thorough driver code reviews focusing on memory management patterns, implement runtime monitoring for suspicious ioctl usage patterns, and maintain up-to-date driver firmware to address known vulnerabilities in device driver implementations.