NULL pointer dereference in Linux

CVE-2025-38489

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: s390/bpf: Fix bpf_arch_text_poke() with new_addr == NULL again Commit 7ded842b356d ("s390/bpf: Fix bpf_plt pointer arithmetic") has accidentally removed the critical piece of commit c730fce7c70c ("s390/bpf: Fix bpf_arch_text_poke() with new_addr == NULL"), causing intermittent kernel panics in e.g. perf's on_switch() prog to reappear. Restore the fix and add a comment.

Published · last modified .

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 5.5 (Medium). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.001 (3.2th percentile), scored .

Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 3rd percentile — 3.2% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS trend (30 days)EPSS over the last 30 days for CVE-2025-38489: held from 0.001 to 0.001.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.001 · newest: 0.001 · change: +0.000

Affected products

Weakness classification (CWE)

Public proof-of-concept exploits

References

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2025-38489?
CVE-2025-38489 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux, classified under NULL Pointer Dereference. CVSS score: 5.5/10. Published 2025-07-28.
How severe is CVE-2025-38489?
Medium severity. CVSS v3 base score is 5.5 out of 10.
Is CVE-2025-38489 known to be exploited?
1 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.