# CVE-2025-39821: perf: Avoid undefined behavior from stopping/starting inactive events

> A logic flaw in Linux kernel perf event throttling causes undefined behavior when processing inactive events, potentially leading to system instability or crashes.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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:** 16 Sep 2025
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2025-39821, DEBIAN-CVE-2025-39821, GHSA-cqwc-52gw-4x53, UBUNTU-CVE-2025-39821

## What is CVE-2025-39821?

CVE-2025-39821 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 16 Sep 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:

perf: Avoid undefined behavior from stopping/starting inactive events

Calling pmu->start()/stop() on perf events in PERF_EVENT_STATE_OFF can
leave event->hw.idx at -1. When PMU drivers later attempt to use this
negative index as a shift exponent in bitwise operations, it leads to UBSAN
shift-out-of-bounds reports.

The issue is a logical flaw in how event groups handle throttling when some
members are intentionally disabled. Based on the analysis and the
reproducer provided by Mark Rutland (this issue on both arm64 and x86-64).

The scenario unfolds as follows:

 1. A group leader event is configured with a very aggressive sampling
    period (e.g., sample_period = 1). This causes frequent interrupts and
    triggers the throttling mechanism.
 2. A child event in the same group is created in a disabled state
    (.disabled = 1). This event remains in PERF_EVENT_STATE_OFF.
    Since it hasn't been scheduled onto the PMU, its event->hw.idx remains
    initialized at -1.
 3. When throttling occurs, perf_event_throttle_group() and later
    perf_event_unthrottle_group() iterate through all siblings, including
    the disabled child event.
 4. perf_event_throttle()/unthrottle() are called on this inactive child
    event, which then call event->pmu->start()/stop().
 5. The PMU driver receives the event with hw.idx == -1 and attempts to
    use it as a shift exponent. e.g., in macros like PMCNTENSET(idx),
    leading to the UBSAN report.

The throttling mechanism attempts to start/stop events that are not
actively scheduled on the hardware.

Move the state check into perf_event_throttle()/perf_event_unthrottle() so
that inactive events are skipped entirely. This ensures only active events
with a valid hw.idx are processed, preventing undefined behavior and
silencing UBSAN warnings. The corrected check ensures true before
proceeding with PMU operations.

The problem can be reproduced with the syzkaller reproducer:

Weakness: CWE-787 (Out-of-bounds Write)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-39821?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2025-39821?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2025-39821 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-39821 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-2025-39821 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2025-39821 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 16 Sep 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-2025-39821 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-2025-39821/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-39821/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-39821
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-39821
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2025-39821

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-39821/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.