CVE-2025-45006
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability in Rocket Chip RISC-V processors allows unauthorized access to physical memory due to improper retention of the mstatus.SUM bit. It affects systems using vulnerable versions of the open-source Rocket Chip processor implementation. Attackers could potentially read or modify sensitive data in memory.
💻 Affected Systems
- Rocket Chip RISC-V Processor
⚠️ Manual Verification Required
This CVE does not have specific version information in our database, so automatic vulnerability detection cannot determine if your system is affected.
Why? The CVE database entry doesn't specify which versions are vulnerable (no version ranges provided by the vendor/NVD).
🔒 Custom verification scripts are available for registered users. Sign up free to download automated test scripts.
- Review the CVE details at NVD
- Check vendor security advisories for your specific version
- Test if the vulnerability is exploitable in your environment
- Consider updating to the latest version as a precaution
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise allowing attackers to read all physical memory contents, including kernel data, encryption keys, and sensitive application data.
Likely Case
Information disclosure of sensitive data from memory, potentially leading to credential theft or data exfiltration.
If Mitigated
Limited impact if proper memory isolation and access controls are implemented at higher system levels.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires privileged access to execute code on the affected system and knowledge of the hardware vulnerability.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Check for commits after f517abb in the Rocket Chip repository
Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/chipsalliance/rocket-chip.git
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Update to a fixed version of Rocket Chip processor design. 2. Recompile and redeploy the hardware design. 3. Update any affected systems with the new hardware implementation.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Memory Access Restrictions
allImplement strict memory access controls at the operating system level to limit the impact of potential memory access violations.
Configure kernel memory protection mechanisms
Implement strict process isolation
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Isolate affected systems from sensitive networks and data
- Implement additional monitoring for unusual memory access patterns
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check the Rocket Chip commit hash in your hardware design. If it includes or is based on commit f517abb, the system is vulnerable.Check Version:
Check the git commit history of your Rocket Chip implementationVerify Fix Applied:
Verify that the hardware design uses a Rocket Chip version with the mstatus.SUM bit fix implemented.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unexpected memory access violations
- Privilege escalation attempts
Network Indicators:
- Unusual data exfiltration patterns from affected systems
SIEM Query:
Search for memory access violation events or privilege escalation on systems using Rocket Chip processors