# CVE-2025-0838: Heap Buffer overflow in Abseil

> An integer overflow in Abseil hash containers allows attackers to trigger heap buffer overflows, potentially leading to code execution or crashes.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.9 (`CVSS:4.0/AV:A/AC:H/AT:P/PR:L/UI:A/VC:L/VI:H/VA:L/SC:L/SI:H/SA:L`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 21 Feb 2025
- **Updated:** 5 Apr 2025
- **Also known as:** AZL-76815, AZL-76853, AZL-76968, AZL-77043, BELL-CVE-2025-0838, DEBIAN-CVE-2025-0838, DLA-4116-1, ECHO-ba22-656a-8e69, GHSA-m9gf-vf48-rg58, OESA-2025-1219, SUSE-SU-2026:0338-1, SUSE-SU-2026:0381-1, SUSE-SU-2026:0412-1, SUSE-SU-2026:0576-1, SUSE-SU-2026:20268-1, SUSE-SU-2026:20361-1, UBUNTU-CVE-2025-0838, USN-7505-1, openSUSE-SU-2025:15473-1

## What is CVE-2025-0838?

CVE-2025-0838 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 21 Feb 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

There exists a heap buffer overflow vulnerable in Abseil-cpp. The sized constructors, reserve(), and rehash() methods of absl::{flat,node}hash{set,map} did not impose an upper bound on their size argument. As a result, it was possible for a caller to pass a very large size that would cause an integer overflow when computing the size of the container's backing store, and a subsequent out-of-bounds memory write. Subsequent accesses to the container might also access out-of-bounds memory. We recommend upgrading past commit 5a0e2cb5e3958dd90bb8569a2766622cb74d90c1

Weakness: CWE-190 (Integer Overflow or Wraparound)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-0838?

It affects 2 products.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `abseil-cpp` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3 | All versions | 20230802.3-150400.10.7.1 |
| `abseil-cpp` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.4 | All versions | 20240116.3-150500.13.10.1 |
| `abseil-cpp` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.5 | All versions | 20240116.3-150500.13.10.1 |
| `abseil-cpp` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Module for Basesystem 15 SP7 | All versions | 20240116.3-150600.19.6.1 |
| `abseil-cpp` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server LTSS Extended Security 12 SP5 | All versions | 20240116.3-8.6.1 |
| `abseil-cpp` | SUSE:Linux Micro 6.0 | All versions | 20230802.3-1.1 |
| `abseil-cpp` | SUSE:Linux Micro 6.1 | All versions | 20230802.3-slfo.1.1_1.1 |
| `abseil-cpp` | openSUSE:Leap 15.6 | All versions | 20240116.3-150600.19.6.1 |
| `abseil-cpp` | openSUSE:Tumbleweed | All versions | 20250814.0-2.1 |

Products: Abseil Common Libraries, Debian Debian Linux.

## How do I fix CVE-2025-0838?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2025-0838 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-0838 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2025-0838 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2025-0838 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 21 Feb 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-0838 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Debian Debian Linux. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-0838/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-0838/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-0838
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-0838
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2025-0838

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-0838/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.