CVE-2025-38687

EPSS 0.0%
  • Published: 2025-09-04T16:15:36.700

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

comedi: fix race between polling and detaching

syzbot reports a use-after-free in comedi in the below link, which is
due to comedi gladly removing the allocated async area even though poll
requests are still active on the wait_queue_head inside of it. This can
cause a use-after-free when the poll entries are later triggered or
removed, as the memory for the wait_queue_head has been freed. We need
to check there are no tasks queued on any of the subdevices’ wait queues
before allowing the device to be detached by the `COMEDI_DEVCONFIG`
ioctl.

Tasks will read-lock `dev->attach_lock` before adding themselves to the
subdevice wait queue, so fix the problem in the `COMEDI_DEVCONFIG` ioctl
handler by write-locking `dev->attach_lock` before checking that all of
the subdevices are safe to be deleted. This includes testing for any
sleepers on the subdevices’ wait queues. It remains locked until the
device has been detached. This requires the `comedi_device_detach()`
function to be refactored slightly, moving the bulk of it into new
function `comedi_device_detach_locked()`.

Note that the refactor of `comedi_device_detach()` results in
`comedi_device_cancel_all()` now being called while `dev->attach_lock`
is write-locked, which wasn’t the case previously, but that does not
matter.

Thanks to Jens Axboe for diagnosing the problem and co-developing this
patch.

Related CVE by CWE

No related CWE found.

Top CVE for Vendor

No vendor taxonomy on this entry.

Recently Exploited Similar Vulnerabilities

No recent KEV-listed items for this vendor/product.

How to fix CVE-2025-38687

CVE-2025-38687 is a unknown severity vulnerability affecting the affected product.

Description: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: comedi: fix race between polling and detaching syzbot reports a use-after-free in comedi in the below link, which is due to comedi gladly removing the allocated async area even though poll requests are still active on the wait_queue_head inside of it. This can cause a […]

Exploit Difficulty: HARD
⏱️ Time to exploit: > 4 hours
🛠️ Required skills: Advanced security expertise
💰 Public exploits: Rare or not public

How to Fix:

1 Identify affected systems

- Check if you're running the affected product

2 Immediate actions

- Update to the latest patched version
- If patching is not immediately possible: restrict network exposure, apply least-privilege access

3 Verification

- Test the fix in a staging environment first
- Review logs for signs of exploitation
- Monitor for IOCs (Indicators of Compromise)

4 Long-term prevention

- Enable automatic security updates
- Set up vulnerability monitoring
- Review and harden security configurations

Exploit Difficulty Assessment

HARD
⏱️ Time to Exploit: > 4 hours
🛠️ Skills Required: Advanced security expertise
💰 Public Exploits: Rare or not public

Vulnerability Timeline

Sep 04, 2025
Vulnerability Published

CVE details first published to NVD database

Nov 12, 2025
Imported to Database

Added to this CVE tracking system

Detection Rules & IOCs

No specific detection rules generated for this vulnerability type.

No vendor/product data available.