In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/sev: Use TSC_FACTOR for Secure TSC frequency calculation When using Secure TSC, the GUEST_TSC_FREQ MSR reports a frequency based on the nominal P0 frequency, which deviates slightly (typically ~0.2%) from the actual mean TSC frequency due to clocking parameters. Over extended VM uptime, this discrepancy accumulates, causing clock skew between the hypervisor and a SEV-SNP VM, leading to early timer interrupts as perceived by the guest. The guest kernel relies on the reported nominal frequency for TSC-based timekeeping, while the actual frequency set during SNP_LAUNCH_START may differ. This mismatch results in inaccurate time calculations, causing the guest to perceive hrtimers as firing earlier than expected. Utilize the TSC_FACTOR from the SEV firmware's secrets page (see "Secrets Page Format" in the SNP Firmware ABI Specification) to calculate the mean TSC frequency, ensuring accurate timekeeping and mitigating clock skew in SEV-SNP VMs. Use early_ioremap_encrypted() to map the secrets page as ioremap_encrypted() uses kmalloc() which is not available during early TSC initialization and causes a panic. [ bp: Drop the silly dummy var: https://lore.kernel.org/r/20250630192726.GBaGLlHl84xIopx4Pt@fat_crate.local ]
Conclusion & alert: CVE-2025-38508 is rated Low Risk (23.1/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.02%). 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.
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 | 2025-08-16 | — | 0.02% | — |
Full EPSS history (1 record total)
CVSS metrics for this CVE.
| Base score | Version | Severity | Vector | Exploitability | Impact | Score source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5.5 | 3.1 | MEDIUM |
|
1.8 | 3.6 | [email protected] |
| vendor | priority | summary | link |
|---|---|---|---|
debian
|
unimportant | CVE-2025-38508 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-2025-38508 |
redhat
|
— | — | https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-38508 |
suse
|
medium | CVE-2025-38508 severity moderate: SUSE including 94 source package names (cluster-md-kmp-64kb-6.12.0-160000.6.1, cluster-md-kmp-default, …), 512 product×package rows across 91 product lines (Image SLES-Azure-3P, Image SLES-Azure-Basic, … (91 product lines)): Known Not Affected 314, Fixed 177, First Fixed 21. | https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-38508/ |
ubuntu
|
medium | CVE-2025-38508 medium priority: Ubuntu including 158 source packages (linux, linux-allwinner-5.19, …), 1414 status rows across 9 suites (bionic, focal, jammy, noble, plucky, questing, trusty, upstream, xenial): DNE 1017, ignored 159, not-affected 132, released 102, needs-triage 2, needed 1, pending 1. | https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2025-38508 |
| Vendor | Product | Version | Raw CPE |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | linux_kernel | >= 6.14, < 6.15.7 | cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| linux | linux_kernel | 6.16 | cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.16:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| linux | linux_kernel | 6.16 | cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.16:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| linux | linux_kernel | 6.16 | cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.16:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| linux | linux_kernel | 6.16 | cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.16:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:* |