CVE-2025-21688 | drm/v3d: Assign job pointer to NULL before signaling the fence

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: drm/v3d: Assign job pointer to NULL before signaling the fence In commit e4b5ccd392b9 ("drm/v3d: Ensure job pointer is set to NULL after job completion"), we introduced a change to assign the job pointer to NULL after completing a job, indicating job completion. However, this approach created a race condition between the DRM scheduler workqueue and the IRQ execution thread. As soon as the fence is signaled in the IRQ execution thread, a new job starts to be executed. This results in a race condition where the IRQ execution thread sets the job pointer to NULL simultaneously as the `run_job()` function assigns a new job to the pointer. This race condition can lead to a NULL pointer dereference if the IRQ execution thread sets the job pointer to NULL after `run_job()` assigns it to the new job. When the new job completes and the GPU emits an interrupt, `v3d_irq()` is triggered, potentially causing a crash. [ 466.310099] Unable to handle kernel NULL pointer dereference at virtual address 00000000000000c0 [ 466.318928] Mem abort info: [ 466.321723] ESR = 0x0000000096000005 [ 466.325479] EC = 0x25: DABT (current EL), IL = 32 bits [ 466.330807] SET = 0, FnV = 0 [ 466.333864] EA = 0, S1PTW = 0 [ 466.337010] FSC = 0x05: level 1 translation fault [ 466.341900] Data abort info: [ 466.344783] ISV = 0, ISS = 0x00000005, ISS2 = 0x00000000 [ 466.350285] CM = 0, WnR = 0, TnD = 0, TagAccess = 0 [ 466.355350] GCS = 0, Overlay = 0, DirtyBit = 0, Xs = 0 [ 466.360677] user pgtable: 4k pages, 39-bit VAs, pgdp=0000000089772000 [ 466.367140] [00000000000000c0] pgd=0000000000000000, p4d=0000000000000000, pud=0000000000000000 [ 466.375875] Internal error: Oops: 0000000096000005 [#1] PREEMPT SMP [ 466.382163] Modules linked in: rfcomm snd_seq_dummy snd_hrtimer snd_seq snd_seq_device algif_hash algif_skcipher af_alg bnep binfmt_misc vc4 snd_soc_hdmi_codec drm_display_helper cec brcmfmac_wcc spidev rpivid_hevc(C) drm_client_lib brcmfmac hci_uart drm_dma_helper pisp_be btbcm brcmutil snd_soc_core aes_ce_blk v4l2_mem2mem bluetooth aes_ce_cipher snd_compress videobuf2_dma_contig ghash_ce cfg80211 gf128mul snd_pcm_dmaengine videobuf2_memops ecdh_generic sha2_ce ecc videobuf2_v4l2 snd_pcm v3d sha256_arm64 rfkill videodev snd_timer sha1_ce libaes gpu_sched snd videobuf2_common sha1_generic drm_shmem_helper mc rp1_pio drm_kms_helper raspberrypi_hwmon spi_bcm2835 gpio_keys i2c_brcmstb rp1 raspberrypi_gpiomem rp1_mailbox rp1_adc nvmem_rmem uio_pdrv_genirq uio i2c_dev drm ledtrig_pattern drm_panel_orientation_quirks backlight fuse dm_mod ip_tables x_tables ipv6 [ 466.458429] CPU: 0 UID: 1000 PID: 2008 Comm: chromium Tainted: G C 6.13.0-v8+ #18 [ 466.467336] Tainted: [C]=CRAP [ 466.470306] Hardware name: Raspberry Pi 5 Model B Rev 1.0 (DT) [ 466.476157] pstate: 404000c9 (nZcv daIF +PAN -UAO -TCO -DIT -SSBS BTYPE=--) [ 466.483143] pc : v3d_irq+0x118/0x2e0 [v3d] [ 466.487258] lr : __handle_irq_event_percpu+0x60/0x228 [ 466.492327] sp : ffffffc080003ea0 [ 466.495646] x29: ffffffc080003ea0 x28: ffffff80c0c94200 x27: 0000000000000000 [ 466.502807] x26: ffffffd08dd81d7b x25: ffffff80c0c94200 x24: ffffff8003bdc200 [ 466.509969] x23: 0000000000000001 x22: 00000000000000a7 x21: 0000000000000000 [ 466.517130] x20: ffffff8041bb0000 x19: 0000000000000001 x18: 0000000000000000 [ 466.524291] x17: ffffffafadfb0000 x16: ffffffc080000000 x15: 0000000000000000 [ 466.531452] x14: 0000000000000000 x13: 0000000000000000 x12: 0000000000000000 [ 466.538613] x11: 0000000000000000 x10: 0000000000000000 x9 : ffffffd08c527eb0 [ 466.545777] x8 : 0000000000000000 x7 : 0000000000000000 x6 : 0000000000000000 [ 466.552941] x5 : ffffffd08c4100d0 x4 : ffffffafadfb0000 x3 : ffffffc080003f70 [ 466.560102] x2 : ffffffc0829e8058 x1 : 0000000000000001 x0 : 0000000000000000 [ 466.567263] Call trace: [ 466.569711] v3d_irq+0x118/0x2e0 [v3d] (P) [ 466. ---truncated---

Published: 2025-02-10 Last update: 2025-11-03 Assigner: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2025-21688 is rated Low Risk (21.9/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.03%). Mandatory action: Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2025-21688

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2025-11-21 0.06% 0.03% -0.03%
2 2025-11-18 0.04% 0.06% +0.02%
3 2025-02-11 0.04%

Full EPSS history (3 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2025-21688

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
4.7 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
1.0 3.6 [email protected]
4.7 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
1.0 3.6 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2025-21688

OS Trackers for CVE-2025-21688

vendor priority summary link
debian not yet assigned CVE-2025-21688 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 2 source packages (linux, linux-6.1), 6 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 6. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2025-21688
redhat medium https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-21688
suse medium CVE-2025-21688 severity moderate: SUSE including 418 source package names (2.1.3-6.11:kernel-default-6.4.0-28.1, 2.1.3-6.12:kernel-default-base-6.4.0-28.1.21.6, …), 794 product×package rows across 140 product lines (Container suse/sl-micro/6.0/base-os-container, Container suse/sl-micro/6.0/kvm-os-container, … (140 product lines)): Fixed 362, Known Affected 231, Known Not Affected 201. https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-21688/
ubuntu medium CVE-2025-21688 medium priority: Ubuntu including 128 source packages (linux, linux-allwinner-5.19, …), 1024 status rows across 8 suites (bionic, focal, jammy, noble, oracular, trusty, upstream, xenial): DNE 702, ignored 146, not-affected 114, released 62. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2025-21688

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2025-21688

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
linux linux_kernel 5.15.177 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15.177:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.1.127 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.1.127:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.6.74 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.6.74:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.12.11 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.12.11:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.13 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.13:-:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2025-21688

cvelogic Threat Intelligence