Linux Kernel up to 6.17.7 ASoC dmaengine_pcm use after free

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 6.17.7. It has been rated as critical. This vulnerability affects the function dmaengine_pcm of the component ASoC. Performing a manipulation results in use after free. This vulnerability is reported as CVE-2025-40338. No exploit exists. Upgrading the affected component is advised.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 6.17.7. It has been classified as critical. This affects the function dmaengine_pcm of the component ASoC. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a use after free vulnerability. CWE is classifying the issue as CWE-416. Referencing memory after it has been freed can cause a program to crash, use unexpected values, or execute code. This is going to have an impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ASoC: Intel: avs: Do not share the name pointer between components By sharing 'name' directly, tearing down components may lead to use-after-free errors. Duplicate the name to avoid that. At the same time, update the order of operations - since commit cee28113db17 ("ASoC: dmaengine_pcm: Allow passing component name via config") the framework does not override component->name if set before invoking the initializer.

It is possible to read the advisory at git.kernel.org. This vulnerability is uniquely identified as CVE-2025-40338 since 04/16/2025. The exploitability is told 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 01/24/2026).

The vulnerability scanner Nessus provides a plugin with the ID 296481 (SUSE SLES15 Security Update : kernel (SUSE-SU-2026:0278-1)), which helps to determine the existence of the flaw in a target environment.

Upgrading to version 6.17.8 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch 128bf29c992988f8b4f3829227339908fde5ec86/4dee5c1cc439b0d5ef87f741518268ad6a95b23d 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 (296481). Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.

Productinfo

Type

• Operating System

Vendor

• Linux

Name

• Kernel

Version

• 6.17.0
• 6.17.1
• 6.17.2
• 6.17.3
• 6.17.4
• 6.17.5
• 6.17.6
• 6.17.7

License

• open-source

Website

• Vendor: https://www.kernel.org/

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

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