CVE-2025-38480

MEDIUM

Linux Kernel < 5.4.297 - Use of Uninitialized Resource

Title source: rule
STIX 2.1

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: comedi: Fix use of uninitialized data in insn_rw_emulate_bits() For Comedi `INSN_READ` and `INSN_WRITE` instructions on "digital" subdevices (subdevice types `COMEDI_SUBD_DI`, `COMEDI_SUBD_DO`, and `COMEDI_SUBD_DIO`), it is common for the subdevice driver not to have `insn_read` and `insn_write` handler functions, but to have an `insn_bits` handler function for handling Comedi `INSN_BITS` instructions. In that case, the subdevice's `insn_read` and/or `insn_write` function handler pointers are set to point to the `insn_rw_emulate_bits()` function by `__comedi_device_postconfig()`. For `INSN_WRITE`, `insn_rw_emulate_bits()` currently assumes that the supplied `data[0]` value is a valid copy from user memory. It will at least exist because `do_insnlist_ioctl()` and `do_insn_ioctl()` in "comedi_fops.c" ensure at lease `MIN_SAMPLES` (16) elements are allocated. However, if `insn->n` is 0 (which is allowable for `INSN_READ` and `INSN_WRITE` instructions, then `data[0]` may contain uninitialized data, and certainly contains invalid data, possibly from a different instruction in the array of instructions handled by `do_insnlist_ioctl()`. This will result in an incorrect value being written to the digital output channel (or to the digital input/output channel if configured as an output), and may be reflected in the internal saved state of the channel. Fix it by returning 0 early if `insn->n` is 0, before reaching the code that accesses `data[0]`. Previously, the function always returned 1 on success, but it is supposed to be the number of data samples actually read or written up to `insn->n`, which is 0 in this case.

Scores

CVSS v3 5.5
EPSS 0.0002
EPSS Percentile 6.2%
Attack Vector LOCAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

Details

CWE
CWE-908
Status published
Products (10)
debian/debian_linux 11.0
linux/Kernel 2.6.29 - 5.4.297linux
linux/Kernel 5.11.0 - 5.15.190linux
linux/Kernel 5.16.0 - 6.1.147linux
linux/Kernel 5.5.0 - 5.10.241linux
linux/Kernel 6.13.0 - 6.15.8linux
linux/Kernel 6.2.0 - 6.6.100linux
linux/Kernel 6.7.0 - 6.12.40linux
linux/linux_kernel 6.16 rc1 (6 CPE variants)
linux/linux_kernel 2.6.29 - 5.4.297
Published Jul 28, 2025
Tracked Since Feb 18, 2026