MEDIUM · 5.5

CVE-2025-38709

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: loop: Avoid updating block size under exclusive owner Syzbot came up with a reproducer where a loop device block size is changed u...

Vulnerability Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: loop: Avoid updating block size under exclusive owner Syzbot came up with a reproducer where a loop device block size is changed underneath a mounted filesystem. This causes a mismatch between the block device block size and the block size stored in the superblock causing confusion in various places such as fs/buffer.c. The particular issue triggered by syzbot was a warning in __getblk_slow() due to requested buffer size not matching block device block size. Fix the problem by getting exclusive hold of the loop device to change its block size. This fails if somebody (such as filesystem) has already an exclusive ownership of the block device and thus prevents modifying the loop device under some exclusive owner which doesn't expect it.

CVSS Score

5.5

MEDIUM

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Attack Vector
LOCAL
Attack Complexity
LOW
Privileges Required
LOW
User Interaction
NONE
Scope
UNCHANGED
Confidentiality
NONE
Integrity
NONE
Availability
HIGH

Affected Products

VendorProductVersions
LinuxLinux Kernel< 6.6.109

References

FAQ

What is CVE-2025-38709?

CVE-2025-38709 is a vulnerability with a CVSS score of 5.5 (MEDIUM). In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: loop: Avoid updating block size under exclusive owner Syzbot came up with a reproducer where a loop device block size is changed u...

How severe is CVE-2025-38709?

CVE-2025-38709 has been rated MEDIUM with a CVSS base score of 5.5/10. Review the CVSS metrics above for detailed severity breakdown.

Is there a patch for CVE-2025-38709?

Check the references section above for vendor advisories and patch information. Affected products include: Linux Linux Kernel.