CVE-2025-8300 Realtek rtl81xx SDK Wi-Fi Driver rtwlanu Heap-based Buffer Overflow Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability

High 8.8 Published 2 Sep 2025 Updated 3 Sep 2025

Local attackers can escalate privileges to SYSTEM via a heap-based buffer overflow in the Realtek rtl81xx Wi-Fi driver.

Exploited in the wild: Not known
Login needed: Any signed-in user
Attackable: Local or same network only
Victim action needed: Not needed
Fix: None listed

What is CVE-2025-8300?

CVE-2025-8300 is a high-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Realtek rtl81xx SDK, published on 2 Sep 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

Official description

Realtek rtl81xx SDK Wi-Fi Driver rtwlanu Heap-based Buffer Overflow Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges on affected installations of Realtek rtl81xx SDK Wi-Fi driver. An attacker must first obtain the ability to execute low-privileged code on the target system in order to exploit this vulnerability.

The specific flaw exists within the N6CSet_DOT11_CIPHER_DEFAULT_KEY function. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of the length of user-supplied data prior to copying it to a fixed-length heap-based buffer. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to escalate privileges and execute arbitrary code in the context of SYSTEM. Was ZDI-CAN-26552.

Weakness: CWE-122

Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-8300?

It affects 1 product.

Products include Realtek Wi-Fi Usb Driver.

How do I fix CVE-2025-8300?

No fix has been published for CVE-2025-8300 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

Upgrade to the fixed version. Memory-safe languages, compiler hardening and fuzzing prevent most new cases. More about Memory corruption.

Is CVE-2025-8300 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-8300 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Sources

Also known as GHSA-5p4c-63p6-3pjp.