# CVE-2025-38362: drm/amd/display: Add null pointer check for get_first_active_display()

> A missing null pointer check in the AMD display driver can cause a kernel crash when enabling HDCP encryption with no active displays.

- **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:** 25 Jul 2025
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-72596, BELL-CVE-2025-38362, DEBIAN-CVE-2025-38362, GHSA-m2wh-w7w6-m2cj, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-11-CVE-2025-38362, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-12-CVE-2025-38362, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2204-CVE-2025-38362, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2404-CVE-2025-38362, UBUNTU-CVE-2025-38362

## What is CVE-2025-38362?

CVE-2025-38362 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 25 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:

drm/amd/display: Add null pointer check for get_first_active_display()

The function mod_hdcp_hdcp1_enable_encryption() calls the function
get_first_active_display(), but does not check its return value.
The return value is a null pointer if the display list is empty.
This will lead to a null pointer dereference in
mod_hdcp_hdcp2_enable_encryption().

Add a null pointer check for get_first_active_display() and return
MOD_HDCP_STATUS_DISPLAY_NOT_FOUND if the function return null.

Weakness: CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-38362?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Debian Debian Linux, Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2025-38362?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2025-38362 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-38362 in the wild and no public exploit code.

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- [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-2025-38362 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2025-38362 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 25 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-2025-38362 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-2025-38362/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-38362/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-38362
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-38362
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2025-38362

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-38362/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.