CVE-2025-38192: linux kernel Null Dereference — Fix

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: clear the dst when changing skb protocol A not-so-careful NAT46 BPF program can crash the kernel if it indiscriminately flips ingress packets from v4 to v6: BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0000000000000000 ip6_rcv_core (net/ipv6/ip6_input.c:190:20) ipv6_rcv (net/ipv6/ip6_input.c:306:8) process_backlog (net/core/dev.c:6186:4) napi_poll (net/core/dev.c:6906:9) net_rx_action (net/core/dev.c:7028:13) do_softirq (kernel/softirq.c:462:3) netif_rx (net/core/dev.c:5326:3) dev_loopback_xmit (net/core/dev.c:4015:2) ip_mc_finish_output (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:363:8) NF_HOOK (./include/linux/netfilter.h:314:9) ip_mc_output (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:400:5) dst_output (./include/net/dst.h:459:9) ip_local_out (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:130:9) ip_send_skb (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:1496:8) udp_send_skb (net/ipv4/udp.c:1040:8) udp_sendmsg (net/ipv4/udp.c:1328:10) The output interface has a 4->6 program attached at ingress. We try to loop the multicast skb back to the sending socket. Ingress BPF runs as part of netif_rx(), pushes a valid v6 hdr and changes skb->protocol to v6. We enter ip6_rcv_core which tries to use skb_dst(). But the dst is still an IPv4 one left after IPv4 mcast output. Clear the dst in all BPF helpers which change the protocol. Try to preserve metadata dsts, those may carry non-routing metadata.

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CVSS v3.1 Score

5.5

MEDIUM

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

Weakness Type (CWE)

CWE-476 CWE-476

Affected Products

Vendor	Product	Versions
linux	linux_kernel	4.8 — 6.6.95
linux	linux_kernel	6.7 — 6.12.35
linux	linux_kernel	6.13 — 6.15.4
linux	linux_kernel	All

References

Advisories & Patches

https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2a3ad42a57b43145839f2f233fb562247658a6d9 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ba9db6f907ac02215e30128770f85fbd7db2fcf9 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/bfa4d86e130a09f67607482e988313430e38f6c4 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e9994e7b9f7bbb882d13c8191731649249150d21

Other References

https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/98b1d8dc9a3170b2614f1e8c93854e75cdd83980

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2025-38192? +

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: clear the dst when changing skb protocol A not-so-careful NAT46 BPF program can crash the kernel if it indiscriminately flips ingress packets from v4 to v6: BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0000000000000000 ip6_rcv_core (net/ipv6/ip6_input.c:190:20) ipv6_rcv (net/ipv6/ip6_input.c:306:8) process_backlog (net/core/dev.c:6186:4) napi_poll (net/core/dev.c:6906:9) net_rx_action (net/core/dev.c:7028:13) do_softirq (kernel/softirq.c:462:3) netif_rx (net/core/dev.c:5326:3) dev_loopback_xmit (net/core/dev.c:4015:2) ip_mc_finish_output (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:363:8) NF_HOOK (./include/linux/netfilter.h:314:9) ip_mc_output (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:400:5) dst_output (./include/net/dst.h:459:9) ip_local_out (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:130:9) ip_send_skb (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:1496:8) udp_send_skb (net/ipv4/udp.c:1040:8) udp_sendmsg (net/ipv4/udp.c:1328:10) The output interface has a 4->6 program attached at ingress. We try to loop the multicast skb back to the sending socket. Ingress BPF runs as part of netif_rx(), pushes a valid v6 hdr and changes skb->protocol to v6. We enter ip6_rcv_core which tries to use skb_dst(). But the dst is still an IPv4 one left after IPv4 mcast output. Clear the dst in all BPF helpers which change the protocol. Try to preserve metadata dsts, those may carry non-routing metadata. It has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 5.5 (MEDIUM).

How severe is CVE-2025-38192? +

CVE-2025-38192 has a CVSS v3.1 score of 5.5 out of 10, rated MEDIUM. This is a medium-severity vulnerability that should be remediated as part of regular maintenance.

What products are affected by CVE-2025-38192? +

CVE-2025-38192 affects products from linux, specifically: linux_kernel. Check the affected products table above for specific version ranges.

How do I check if I'm vulnerable to CVE-2025-38192? +

You can use Secably's free Website Scanner to check your website for known vulnerabilities. For infrastructure scanning, use the Port Scanner to identify exposed services that may be affected. Check the vendor advisories linked above for specific patch and version information.

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CVE-2025-38192