CVE-2025-38696

  • Published: 2025-09-04T16:15:38.060

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

MIPS: Don’t crash in stack_top() for tasks without ABI or vDSO

Not all tasks have an ABI associated or vDSO mapped,
for example kthreads never do.
If such a task ever ends up calling stack_top(), it will derefence the
NULL ABI pointer and crash.

This can for example happen when using kunit:

mips_stack_top+0x28/0xc0
arch_pick_mmap_layout+0x190/0x220
kunit_vm_mmap_init+0xf8/0x138
__kunit_add_resource+0x40/0xa8
kunit_vm_mmap+0x88/0xd8
usercopy_test_init+0xb8/0x240
kunit_try_run_case+0x5c/0x1a8
kunit_generic_run_threadfn_adapter+0x28/0x50
kthread+0x118/0x240
ret_from_kernel_thread+0x14/0x1c

Only dereference the ABI point if it is set.

The GIC page is also included as it is specific to the vDSO.
Also move the randomization adjustment into the same conditional.

Related CVE by CWE

No related CWE found.

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Recently Exploited Similar Vulnerabilities

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How to fix CVE-2025-38696

CVE-2025-38696 is a unknown severity vulnerability affecting the affected product.

Description: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: MIPS: Don’t crash in stack_top() for tasks without ABI or vDSO Not all tasks have an ABI associated or vDSO mapped, for example kthreads never do. If such a task ever ends up calling stack_top(), it will derefence the NULL ABI pointer and crash. This […]

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.