# CVE-2025-71156: gve: defer interrupt enabling until NAPI registration

> A race condition in the gve network driver allows interrupts to fire before NAPI initialization, causing kernel crashes and denial of service.

- **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:** 23 Jan 2026
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2025-71156, DEBIAN-CVE-2025-71156, GHSA-xfmh-3cc9-8vq3, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-13-CVE-2025-71156, UBUNTU-CVE-2025-71156

## What is CVE-2025-71156?

CVE-2025-71156 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 23 Jan 2026. 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:

gve: defer interrupt enabling until NAPI registration

Currently, interrupts are automatically enabled immediately upon
request. This allows interrupt to fire before the associated NAPI
context is fully initialized and cause failures like below:

[    0.946369] Call Trace:
[    0.946369]  <IRQ>
[    0.946369]  __napi_poll+0x2a/0x1e0
[    0.946369]  net_rx_action+0x2f9/0x3f0
[    0.946369]  handle_softirqs+0xd6/0x2c0
[    0.946369]  ? handle_edge_irq+0xc1/0x1b0
[    0.946369]  __irq_exit_rcu+0xc3/0xe0
[    0.946369]  common_interrupt+0x81/0xa0
[    0.946369]  </IRQ>
[    0.946369]  <TASK>
[    0.946369]  asm_common_interrupt+0x22/0x40
[    0.946369] RIP: 0010:pv_native_safe_halt+0xb/0x10

Use the `IRQF_NO_AUTOEN` flag when requesting interrupts to prevent auto
enablement and explicitly enable the interrupt in NAPI initialization
path (and disable it during NAPI teardown).

This ensures that interrupt lifecycle is strictly coupled with
readiness of NAPI context.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-71156?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2025-71156?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2025-71156 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-71156 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-2025-71156 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2025-71156 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 23 Jan 2026. 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-2025-71156 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-2025-71156/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-71156/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-71156
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-71156
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2025-71156

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-71156/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.