CVE-2025-22081 – This CVE describes an integer overflow vulnerab... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2025-22081?

CVE-2025-22081 has a CVSS score of 5.5 (MEDIUM). This CVE describes an integer overflow vulnerability in the NTFS3 filesystem driver in the Linux kernel on 32-bit systems. When processing NTFS directory entries, an addition operation can wrap around, potentially leading to memory corruption. This affects Linux systems with NTFS3 driver enabled, particularly 32-bit architectures.

📋 TL;DR

This CVE describes an integer overflow vulnerability in the NTFS3 filesystem driver in the Linux kernel on 32-bit systems. When processing NTFS directory entries, an addition operation can wrap around, potentially leading to memory corruption. This affects Linux systems with NTFS3 driver enabled, particularly 32-bit architectures.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

Linux kernel with NTFS3 filesystem driver

Versions: Linux kernel versions with NTFS3 driver before the fix commits

Operating Systems: Linux distributions with NTFS3 support

Default Config Vulnerable: ✅ No

Notes: Only affects 32-bit systems; NTFS3 driver must be loaded (not default on most distributions); vulnerability requires mounting NTFS filesystems

📦 What is this software?

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Kernel panic, system crash, or potential local privilege escalation if an attacker can trigger controlled memory corruption leading to arbitrary code execution in kernel context.

🟠

Likely Case

System instability, kernel panic, or denial of service when processing malicious or malformed NTFS filesystems.

🟢

If Mitigated

No impact if NTFS3 driver is not loaded or if systems are 64-bit only.

🌐 Internet-Facing: LOW - This is a local filesystem driver vulnerability requiring local access to trigger.

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Internal users with local access could potentially exploit this to cause system instability or attempt privilege escalation.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ✅ No

Weaponized: NO

Unauthenticated Exploit: ✅ No

Complexity: MEDIUM

Exploitation requires local access and ability to mount or access NTFS filesystems; reliable exploitation for privilege escalation would be complex

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: Linux kernel with commits 0538f52410b619737e663167b6a2b2d0bc1a589d and related fixes

Vendor Advisory: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0538f52410b619737e663167b6a2b2d0bc1a589d

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Update Linux kernel to version containing the fix commits. 2. Rebuild kernel if compiling from source. 3. Reboot system to load patched kernel.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Disable NTFS3 module

linux

Prevent loading of the vulnerable NTFS3 filesystem driver

echo 'blacklist ntfs3' >> /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist-ntfs3.conf
rmmod ntfs3

Use 64-bit systems only

linux

Deploy only 64-bit Linux systems as vulnerability only affects 32-bit architectures

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Restrict local user access to systems with NTFS3 driver loaded
Avoid mounting untrusted NTFS filesystems on affected systems

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check if NTFS3 module is loaded: 'lsmod | grep ntfs3' and check kernel version against patched versions

Check Version:

uname -r

Verify Fix Applied:

Verify kernel version includes fix commits and NTFS3 module loads without issues when mounting NTFS filesystems

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Kernel panic logs
System crash dumps
Filesystem mount errors related to NTFS

SIEM Query:

source="kernel" AND ("panic" OR "oops") AND "ntfs"

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2025-22081

CVSS v3 Score: 5.5 (MEDIUM)

CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

CWE: CWE-190

EPSS Score: 0.11% exploit probability (30th percentile)

Published: April 16, 2025

Last Updated: November 3, 2025

🔗 References

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🔗 Related Vulnerabilities

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