CVE-2025-38133
📋 TL;DR
A memory corruption vulnerability in the Linux kernel's AD4851/AD4858 IIO ADC driver allows attackers to cause undefined behavior or system crashes. This affects Linux systems using these specific ADC chips for industrial I/O operations. The vulnerability stems from incorrect pointer arithmetic when parsing channel configurations.
💻 Affected Systems
- Linux kernel with AD4851/AD4858 IIO ADC driver enabled
📦 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 →⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Kernel panic, system crash, or potential privilege escalation leading to full system compromise if combined with other vulnerabilities.
Likely Case
System instability, kernel crashes, or denial of service affecting devices using the vulnerable ADC driver.
If Mitigated
Limited impact to specific hardware configurations; systems not using AD4851/AD4858 chips are unaffected.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires kernel access and specific ADC hardware; likely requires local access or physical device interaction.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Patched in kernel commits 499a8cee812588905cc940837e69918c1649a19e and 6c3b9e1167d072ce2d01cafec7866647cf8d3616
Vendor Advisory: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/499a8cee812588905cc940837e69918c1649a19e
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 vulnerable ADC driver
linuxRemove or blacklist the AD4851/AD4858 ADC driver if not needed
echo 'blacklist ad4851' >> /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf
rmmod ad4851
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Disable or remove AD4851/AD4858 ADC hardware from affected systems
- Implement strict access controls to prevent unauthorized kernel module loading
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if AD4851/AD4858 driver is loaded: lsmod | grep ad4851Check Version:
uname -rVerify Fix Applied:
Verify kernel version includes fix commits or check driver version📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Kernel panic logs
- OOM killer messages
- ADC driver error messages in dmesg
Network Indicators:
- None - local vulnerability only
SIEM Query:
search 'kernel panic' OR 'ad4851' OR 'ad4858' in system logs