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Reference page — cumulative record through Wednesday, August 19, 2026 UTC. Reference pages update as the archive grows; only dated daily editions are immutable pages of record.

CVE-2025-38670HIGH
Linux Linux — arm64/entry: Mask DAIF in cpu_switch_to(), call_on_irq_stack()
  AV  AC  PR  UI  S  C  I  A   CVSS    EPSS   %ile   KEV
   L   L   L   N  U  H  N  H    7.1   .0016    5.3     —
AFFECTED
  Product  Versions                                    Fixed
  Linux    3f225f29c69c13ce1cbdb1d607a42efeef080056 –  —
  Linux    6.3 –                                       5.10.210
TIMELINE
  Apr 16  Reserved by Linux
  Aug 22  Published (CNA: Linux)
  Jul 30  RESCORED — CVE-2025-38670 (Linux). CVSS 7.8 → 7.1 (NVD).
CWE-668 · CNA: Linux · CVSS v3.1 · 9 references · NVD status: Modified

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: arm64/entry: Mask DAIF in cpu_switch_to(), call_on_irq_stack() `cpu_switch_to()` and `call_on_irq_stack()` manipulate SP to change to different stacks along with the Shadow Call Stack if it is enabled. Those two stack changes cannot be done atomically and both functions can be interrupted by SErrors or Debug Exceptions which, though unlikely, is very much broken : if interrupted, we can end up with mismatched stacks and Shadow Call Stack leading to clobbered stacks. In `cpu_switch_to()`, it can happen when SP_EL0 points to the new task, but x18 stills points to the old task's SCS. When the interrupt handler tries to save the task's SCS pointer, it will save the old task SCS pointer (x18) into the new task struct (pointed to by SP_EL0), clobbering it. In `call_on_irq_stack()`, it can happen when switching from the task stack to the IRQ stack and when switching back. In both cases, we can be interrupted when the SCS pointer points to the IRQ SCS, but SP points to the task stack. The nested interrupt handler pushes its return addresses on the IRQ SCS. It then detects that SP points to the task stack, calls `call_on_irq_stack()` and clobbers the task SCS pointer with the IRQ SCS pointer, which it will also use ! This leads to tasks returning to addresses on the wrong SCS, or even on the IRQ SCS, triggering kernel panics via CONFIG_VMAP_STACK or FPAC if enabled. This is possible on a default config, but unlikely. However, when enabling CONFIG_ARM64_PSEUDO_NMI, DAIF is unmasked and instead the GIC is responsible for filtering what interrupts the CPU should receive based on priority. Given the goal of emulating NMIs, pseudo-NMIs can be received by the CPU even in `cpu_switch_to()` and `call_on_irq_stack()`, possibly *very* frequently depending on the system configuration and workload, leading to unpredictable kernel panics. Completely mask DAIF in `cpu_switch_to()` and restore it when returning. Do the same in `call_on_irq_stack()`, but restore and mask around the branch. Mask DAIF even if CONFIG_SHADOW_CALL_STACK is not enabled for consistency of behaviour between all configurations. Introduce and use an assembly macro for saving and masking DAIF, as the existing one saves but only masks IF.

Lifecycle

Complete event history — 3 events, chronological
DateEventDetail
April 16, 2025ReservedReserved by Linux
August 22, 2025PublishedPublished (CNA: Linux)
July 30, 2026RESCOREDRESCORED — CVE-2025-38670 (Linux). CVSS 7.8 → 7.1 (NVD).

Affected

Affected products and packages — 2 rows
VendorProduct / PackageEcosystemVersion introducedFixed
LinuxLinux3f225f29c69c13ce1cbdb1d607a42efeef080056
LinuxLinux6.35.10.210

Weaknesses

CWE-668

References (9)

Related

Authoritative record: CVE-2025-38670 at cve.org

Vendors: linux

Weaknesses: CWE-668

About this page

This is a reference page, not a dated page of record. It assembles the complete lifecycle of CVE-2025-38670 from the CVE Program record, NVD enrichment, the CISA KEV catalog, EPSS, and OSV advisories. The box score's numbers (CVSS, EPSS, KEV status) are current as of Wednesday, August 19, 2026 UTC and are re-derived as the archive grows; only dated daily editions are immutable pages of record. The authoritative source for this identifier is cve.org.