# CVE-2025-38100: x86/iopl: Cure TIF_IO_BITMAP inconsistencies

> A local attacker can trigger a kernel crash via NULL pointer dereference in x86 I/O bitmap handling during failed forks or kernel thread creation.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **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:** 3 Jul 2025
- **Updated:** 15 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-64577, BELL-CVE-2025-38100, DEBIAN-CVE-2025-38100, GHSA-hhj3-j6pg-f7mv, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-11-CVE-2025-38100, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-12-CVE-2025-38100, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2204-CVE-2025-38100, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2404-CVE-2025-38100, UBUNTU-CVE-2025-38100

## What is CVE-2025-38100?

CVE-2025-38100 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 3 Jul 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

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

x86/iopl: Cure TIF_IO_BITMAP inconsistencies

io_bitmap_exit() is invoked from exit_thread() when a task exists or
when a fork fails. In the latter case the exit_thread() cleans up
resources which were allocated during fork().

io_bitmap_exit() invokes task_update_io_bitmap(), which in turn ends up
in tss_update_io_bitmap(). tss_update_io_bitmap() operates on the
current task. If current has TIF_IO_BITMAP set, but no bitmap installed,
tss_update_io_bitmap() crashes with a NULL pointer dereference.

There are two issues, which lead to that problem:

  1) io_bitmap_exit() should not invoke task_update_io_bitmap() when
     the task, which is cleaned up, is not the current task. That's a
     clear indicator for a cleanup after a failed fork().

  2) A task should not have TIF_IO_BITMAP set and neither a bitmap
     installed nor IOPL emulation level 3 activated.

     This happens when a kernel thread is created in the context of
     a user space thread, which has TIF_IO_BITMAP set as the thread
     flags are copied and the IO bitmap pointer is cleared.

     Other than in the failed fork() case this has no impact because
     kernel threads including IO workers never return to user space and
     therefore never invoke tss_update_io_bitmap().

Cure this by adding the missing cleanups and checks:

  1) Prevent io_bitmap_exit() to invoke task_update_io_bitmap() if
     the to be cleaned up task is not the current task.

  2) Clear TIF_IO_BITMAP in copy_thread() unconditionally. For user
     space forks it is set later, when the IO bitmap is inherited in
     io_bitmap_share().

For paranoia sake, add a warning into tss_update_io_bitmap() to catch
the case, when that code is invoked with inconsistent state.

Weakness: CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-38100?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Debian Debian Linux, Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2025-38100?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2025-38100 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-38100 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Debian Debian Linux

- [CVE-2015-3306](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-3306/): ProFTPD Improper Access Control (critical 10.0, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-49113](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-49113/): RoundCube Webmail Deserialization of Untrusted Data (critical 9.9, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-24061](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-24061/): GNU InetUtils Argument Injection (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-39682](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-39682/): Linux Kernel Improper Check for Unusual or Exceptional Conditions (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2024-9680](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-9680/): Mozilla Firefox Use-After-Free (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2025-38100 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2025-38100 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 3 Jul 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-38100 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-2025-38100/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-38100/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-38100
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-38100
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2025-38100

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-38100/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.