CVE-2025-38055 | perf/x86/intel: Fix segfault with PEBS-via-PT with sample_freq

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: perf/x86/intel: Fix segfault with PEBS-via-PT with sample_freq Currently, using PEBS-via-PT with a sample frequency instead of a sample period, causes a segfault. For example: BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0000000000000195 <NMI> ? __die_body.cold+0x19/0x27 ? page_fault_oops+0xca/0x290 ? exc_page_fault+0x7e/0x1b0 ? asm_exc_page_fault+0x26/0x30 ? intel_pmu_pebs_event_update_no_drain+0x40/0x60 ? intel_pmu_pebs_event_update_no_drain+0x32/0x60 intel_pmu_drain_pebs_icl+0x333/0x350 handle_pmi_common+0x272/0x3c0 intel_pmu_handle_irq+0x10a/0x2e0 perf_event_nmi_handler+0x2a/0x50 That happens because intel_pmu_pebs_event_update_no_drain() assumes all the pebs_enabled bits represent counter indexes, which is not always the case. In this particular case, bits 60 and 61 are set for PEBS-via-PT purposes. The behaviour of PEBS-via-PT with sample frequency is questionable because although a PMI is generated (PEBS_PMI_AFTER_EACH_RECORD), the period is not adjusted anyway. Putting that aside, fix intel_pmu_pebs_event_update_no_drain() by passing the mask of counter bits instead of 'size'. Note, prior to the Fixes commit, 'size' would be limited to the maximum counter index, so the issue was not hit.

Published: 2025-06-18 Last update: 2026-06-17 Assigner: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2025-38055 is rated Low Risk (23.8/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.15%). 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-2025-38055

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 2026-06-15 0.02% 0.15% +0.14%
2 2025-06-18 0.02%

Full EPSS history (2 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2025-38055

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
5.5 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/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:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
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.
1.8 3.6 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2025-38055

OS Trackers for CVE-2025-38055

vendor priority summary link
debian unimportant CVE-2025-38055 unimportant priority: Debian including 1 source packages (linux), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2025-38055
redhat medium https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-38055
suse medium https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-38055/
ubuntu medium CVE-2025-38055 medium priority: Ubuntu including 158 source packages (linux, linux-allwinner-5.19, …), 1551 status rows across 10 suites (bionic, focal, jammy, noble, oracular, plucky, questing, trusty, upstream, xenial): DNE 1145, ignored 164, released 137, not-affected 100, needed 2, needs-triage 2, pending 1. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2025-38055

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2025-38055

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
linux linux_kernel >= 6.10.5, < 6.12.31 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 6.13, < 6.14.9 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.15:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.15:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.15:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.15:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.15:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.15:rc6:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2025-38055

cvelogic Threat Intelligence