Linux Kernel up to 6.16.9 etas_es58x ndo_change_mtu buffer overflow

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CTI Interest Score
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7.6$0-$5k0.89

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 5.15.193/6.1.154/6.6.108/6.12.49/6.16.9. It has been classified as critical. This affects the function ndo_change_mtu of the component etas_es58x. This manipulation causes buffer overflow. This vulnerability is tracked as CVE-2025-39988. No exploit exists. Upgrading the affected component is recommended.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability classified as critical was found in Linux Kernel up to 5.15.193/6.1.154/6.6.108/6.12.49/6.16.9. Affected by this vulnerability is the function ndo_change_mtu of the component etas_es58x. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a buffer overflow vulnerability. The CWE definition for the vulnerability is CWE-120. The product copies an input buffer to an output buffer without verifying that the size of the input buffer is less than the size of the output buffer, leading to a buffer overflow. As an impact it is known to affect confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: can: etas_es58x: populate ndo_change_mtu() to prevent buffer overflow Sending an PF_PACKET allows to bypass the CAN framework logic and to directly reach the xmit() function of a CAN driver. The only check which is performed by the PF_PACKET framework is to make sure that skb->len fits the interface's MTU. Unfortunately, because the etas_es58x driver does not populate its net_device_ops->ndo_change_mtu(), it is possible for an attacker to configure an invalid MTU by doing, for example: $ ip link set can0 mtu 9999 After doing so, the attacker could open a PF_PACKET socket using the ETH_P_CANXL protocol: socket(PF_PACKET, SOCK_RAW, htons(ETH_P_CANXL)); to inject a malicious CAN XL frames. For example: struct canxl_frame frame = { .flags = 0xff, .len = 2048, }; The CAN drivers' xmit() function are calling can_dev_dropped_skb() to check that the skb is valid, unfortunately under above conditions, the malicious packet is able to go through can_dev_dropped_skb() checks: 1. the skb->protocol is set to ETH_P_CANXL which is valid (the function does not check the actual device capabilities). 2. the length is a valid CAN XL length. And so, es58x_start_xmit() receives a CAN XL frame which it is not able to correctly handle and will thus misinterpret it as a CAN(FD) frame. This can result in a buffer overflow. For example, using the es581.4 variant, the frame will be dispatched to es581_4_tx_can_msg(), go through the last check at the beginning of this function: if (can_is_canfd_skb(skb)) return -EMSGSIZE; and reach this line: memcpy(tx_can_msg->data, cf->data, cf->len); Here, cf->len corresponds to the flags field of the CAN XL frame. In our previous example, we set canxl_frame->flags to 0xff. Because the maximum expected length is 8, a buffer overflow of 247 bytes occurs! Populate net_device_ops->ndo_change_mtu() to ensure that the interface's MTU can not be set to anything bigger than CAN_MTU or CANFD_MTU (depending on the device capabilities). By fixing the root cause, this prevents the buffer overflow.

It is possible to read the advisory at git.kernel.org. This vulnerability is known as CVE-2025-39988 since 04/16/2025. The exploitation appears 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 02/08/2026).

The vulnerability scanner Nessus provides a plugin with the ID 271561 (Linux Distros Unpatched Vulnerability : CVE-2025-39988), which helps to determine the existence of the flaw in a target environment.

Upgrading to version 5.15.194, 6.1.155, 6.6.109, 6.12.50 or 6.16.10 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch 72de0facc50afdb101fb7197d880407f1abfc77f/c4e582e686c4d683c87f2b4a316385b3d81d370f/cbc1de71766f326a44bb798aeae4a7ef4a081cc9/b26cccd87dcddc47b450a40f3b1ac3fe346efcff/e587af2c89ecc6382c518febea52fa9ba81e47c0/38c0abad45b190a30d8284a37264d2127a6ec303 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 databases at Tenable (271561) and CERT Bund (WID-SEC-2025-2298). Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.

Affected

  • Google Container-Optimized OS
  • Debian Linux
  • Amazon Linux 2
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux
  • Ubuntu Linux
  • SUSE Linux
  • Oracle Linux
  • SUSE openSUSE
  • RESF Rocky Linux
  • Open Source Linux Kernel
  • IBM QRadar SIEM
  • Dell NetWorker

Productinfo

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Version

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CPE 2.3info

CPE 2.2info

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 8.0
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 7.6

VulDB Base Score: 8.0
VulDB Temp Score: 7.6
VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv2info

AVACAuCIA
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VulDB Base Score: 🔒
VulDB Temp Score: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: Buffer overflow
CWE: CWE-120 / CWE-119
CAPEC: 🔒
ATT&CK: 🔒

Physical: No
Local: No
Remote: Partially

Availability: 🔒
Status: Not defined

EPSS Score: 🔒
EPSS Percentile: 🔒

Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔒

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Nessus ID: 271561
Nessus Name: Linux Distros Unpatched Vulnerability : CVE-2025-39988

Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Upgrade
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔒

Upgrade: Kernel 5.15.194/6.1.155/6.6.109/6.12.50/6.16.10
Patch: 72de0facc50afdb101fb7197d880407f1abfc77f/c4e582e686c4d683c87f2b4a316385b3d81d370f/cbc1de71766f326a44bb798aeae4a7ef4a081cc9/b26cccd87dcddc47b450a40f3b1ac3fe346efcff/e587af2c89ecc6382c518febea52fa9ba81e47c0/38c0abad45b190a30d8284a37264d2127a6ec303

Timelineinfo

04/16/2025 CVE reserved
10/15/2025 +182 days Advisory disclosed
10/15/2025 +0 days VulDB entry created
02/08/2026 +116 days VulDB entry last update

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: kernel.org

Advisory: git.kernel.org
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2025-39988 (🔒)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2025-39988
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-328627
CERT Bund: WID-SEC-2025-2298 - Linux Kernel: Mehrere Schwachstellen

Entryinfo

Created: 10/15/2025 12:05
Updated: 02/08/2026 20:15
Changes: 10/15/2025 12:05 (59), 10/27/2025 10:21 (2), 11/03/2025 18:47 (7), 11/22/2025 16:50 (1), 12/21/2025 09:10 (1), 02/08/2026 20:15 (1)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

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