# CVE-2025-38621: md: make rdev_addable usable for rcu mode

> A null pointer dereference in the Linux kernel's md driver allows local attackers to cause a system crash via a race condition.

- **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:** 22 Aug 2025
- **Updated:** 7 Sep 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2025-38621, DEBIAN-CVE-2025-38621, GHSA-4p23-qfc5-2vc9, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-13-CVE-2025-38621, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2204-CVE-2025-38621, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2404-CVE-2025-38621, UBUNTU-CVE-2025-38621

## What is CVE-2025-38621?

CVE-2025-38621 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 22 Aug 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:

md: make rdev_addable usable for rcu mode

Our testcase trigger panic:

BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 00000000000000e0
...
Oops: Oops: 0000 [#1] SMP NOPTI
CPU: 2 UID: 0 PID: 85 Comm: kworker/2:1 Not tainted 6.16.0+ #94
PREEMPT(none)
Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS
1.16.1-2.fc37 04/01/2014
Workqueue: md_misc md_start_sync
RIP: 0010:rdev_addable+0x4d/0xf0
...
Call Trace:
 <TASK>
 md_start_sync+0x329/0x480
 process_one_work+0x226/0x6d0
 worker_thread+0x19e/0x340
 kthread+0x10f/0x250
 ret_from_fork+0x14d/0x180
 ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30
 </TASK>
Modules linked in: raid10
CR2: 00000000000000e0
---[ end trace 0000000000000000 ]---
RIP: 0010:rdev_addable+0x4d/0xf0

md_spares_need_change in md_start_sync will call rdev_addable which
protected by rcu_read_lock/rcu_read_unlock. This rcu context will help
protect rdev won't be released, but rdev->mddev will be set to NULL
before we call synchronize_rcu in md_kick_rdev_from_array. Fix this by
using READ_ONCE and check does rdev->mddev still alive.

Weakness: CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-38621?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2025-38621?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2025-38621 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-38621 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

- [CVE-2026-53266](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53266/): Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-6282](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6282/): Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-0185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0185/): Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-2094](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2094/): Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-53362](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53362/): Linux Kernel Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2025-38621 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2025-38621 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 22 Aug 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-2025-38621 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux kernel. 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-2025-38621/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-38621/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-38621
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-38621
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2025-38621

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-38621/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.