Linux Kernel up to 6.17-rc2 iommu str stack-based overflow

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability identified as critical has been detected in Linux Kernel up to 6.17-rc2. This impacts an unknown function of the component iommu. The manipulation of the argument str leads to stack-based overflow. This vulnerability is uniquely identified as CVE-2025-38676. No exploit exists. You should upgrade the affected component.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 6.17-rc2. It has been rated as critical. This issue affects some unknown functionality of the component iommu. The manipulation of the argument str with an unknown input leads to a stack-based overflow vulnerability. Using CWE to declare the problem leads to CWE-121. A stack-based buffer overflow condition is a condition where the buffer being overwritten is allocated on the stack (i.e., is a local variable or, rarely, a parameter to a function). Impacted is confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: iommu/amd: Avoid stack buffer overflow from kernel cmdline While the kernel command line is considered trusted in most environments, avoid writing 1 byte past the end of "acpiid" if the "str" argument is maximum length.

It is possible to read the advisory at git.kernel.org. The identification of this vulnerability is CVE-2025-38676 since 04/16/2025. The exploitation is known to be easy. Technical details of the vulnerability are known, but there is no available exploit. The pricing for an exploit might be around USD $0-$5k at the moment (estimation calculated on 01/09/2026).

The vulnerability scanner Nessus provides a plugin with the ID 265710 (Debian dsa-6008 : ata-modules-6.12.31-armmp-di - security update), which helps to determine the existence of the flaw in a target environment.

Upgrading to version 6.17-rc3 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch 8503d0fcb1086a7cfe26df67ca4bd9bd9e99bdec is able to eliminate this problem. The bugfix is ready for download at git.kernel.org. The best possible mitigation is suggested to be upgrading to the latest version.

The vulnerability is also documented in the vulnerability database at Tenable (265710). Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.

Productinfo

Type

• Operating System

Vendor

• Linux

Name

• Kernel

Version

• 6.17-rc1
• 6.17-rc2

License

• open-source

Website

• Vendor: https://www.kernel.org/

CPE 2.3info

• 🔒
• 🔒
• 🔒

CPE 2.2info

• 🔒
• 🔒
• 🔒

CVSSv4info

CVSSv3info

CVSSv2info

Exploitinginfo

Threat Intelligenceinfo

Countermeasuresinfo

Timelineinfo

Sourcesinfo

Entryinfo

Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.

Discussion