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Vulnerability DatabaseCVE-2025-21788
CVE-2025-21788:
Linux Kernel vulnerability analysis and mitigation
Overview
CVE-2025-21788 affects the Linux kernel's ethernet driver for Texas Instruments AM65 CPSW (Common Platform Switch). The vulnerability was discovered in February 2025 and involves a memory leak in certain XDP (eXpress Data Path) cases (MITRE CVE, NVD).
Technical details
The vulnerability occurs when the XDP program doesn't result in XDP_PASS, causing memory allocated by am65_cpsw_build_skb() to leak. The issue stems from allocating SKB memory before running the XDP program, which wastes CPU cycles for cases other than XDP_PASS. The fix involves moving the SKB allocation after evaluating the XDP program result (Kernel Commit).
Impact
The vulnerability results in memory leaks and reduced performance. Performance testing showed that fixing the issue improved XDP_DROP test performance from 460,256 rx/s to 784,130 rx/s with 0 errors (Kernel Commit).
Mitigation and workarounds
The issue has been fixed in the Linux kernel through a patch that restructures the SKB allocation timing. The fix involves modifying the am65-cpsw-nuss.c driver to allocate SKB memory only after confirming XDP_PASS status (Kernel Commit).
Additional resources
Linux Distribution fix status
Fix availability across major Linux distributions and their releases.
Source: This report was generated using AI
Related Linux Kernel vulnerabilities:
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