# CVE-2025-1371: GNU elfutils eu-read readelf.c handle_dynamic_symtab null pointer dereference

> A local attacker can cause a denial of service in GNU elfutils via a null pointer dereference in the eu-read tool.

- **Severity:** Medium 4.8 (`CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 17 Feb 2025
- **Updated:** 18 Feb 2025
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2025-1371, DEBIAN-CVE-2025-1371, ECHO-162b-a196-2f83, GHSA-mhpv-qvqj-2px4, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-12-CVE-2025-1371, UBUNTU-CVE-2025-1371

## What is CVE-2025-1371?

CVE-2025-1371 is a medium-severity vulnerability in GNU elfutils, published on 17 Feb 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

A vulnerability has been found in GNU elfutils 0.192 and classified as problematic. This vulnerability affects the function handle_dynamic_symtab of the file readelf.c of the component eu-read. The manipulation leads to null pointer dereference. Attacking locally is a requirement. The exploit has been disclosed to the public and may be used. The patch is identified as b38e562a4c907e08171c76b8b2def8464d5a104a. It is recommended to apply a patch to fix this issue.

Weakness: CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference), CWE-404 (Improper Resource Shutdown or Release)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-1371?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Elfutils Project Elfutils.

## How do I fix CVE-2025-1371?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2025-1371 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2025-1371 exists.

## Other vulnerabilities in GNU elfutils

- [CVE-2018-8769](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-8769/): Memory corruption in n/a (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2014-0172](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2014-0172/): Integer overflow in n/a (medium 6.8)
- [CVE-2019-7148](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-7148/): Denial of service in n/a (medium 6.5)
- [CVE-2014-9447](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2014-9447/): Path traversal in n/a (medium 6.4)
- [CVE-2020-21047](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-21047/): Memory corruption in n/a (medium 5.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2025-1371 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2025-1371 is a medium-severity vulnerability in GNU elfutils, published on 17 Feb 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2025-1371 exists.

Affected product: GNU elfutils. 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-2025-1371/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-1371/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-1371
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-1371
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2025-1371

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-1371/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.