CVE-2025-38555: usb: gadget : fix use-after-free in composite_dev_cleanup()

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

• debian debian linux11.0
• linux linux kernel5.5 and later · before 5.10.241
• linux linux kernel5.11 and later · before 5.15.190
• linux linux kernel5.16 and later · before 6.1.148
• linux linux kernel3.16 and later · before 5.4.297
• linux linux kernel6.7 and later · before 6.12.42
• linux linux kernel6.13 and later · before 6.15.10
• linux linux kernel6.16 and later · before 6.16.1
• linux linux kernel6.2 and later · before 6.6.102

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (Linux). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

• Linux Linux

  • 3.16affected
  • 37a3a533429ef9b3cc9f15a656c19623f0e88df7 and later · before dba96dfa5a0f685b959dd28a52ac8dab0b805204affected · git
  • 37a3a533429ef9b3cc9f15a656c19623f0e88df7 and later · before 2db29235e900a084a656dea7e0939b0abb7bb897affected · git
  • 37a3a533429ef9b3cc9f15a656c19623f0e88df7 and later · before 8afb22aa063f706f3343707cdfb8cda4d021dd33affected · git
  • 37a3a533429ef9b3cc9f15a656c19623f0e88df7 and later · before e624bf26127645a2f7821e73fdf6dc64bad07835affected · git
  • 37a3a533429ef9b3cc9f15a656c19623f0e88df7 and later · before aada327a9f8028c573636fa60c0abc80fb8135c9affected · git
  • 37a3a533429ef9b3cc9f15a656c19623f0e88df7 and later · before 5f06ee9f9a3665d43133f125c17e5258a13f3963affected · git
  • 37a3a533429ef9b3cc9f15a656c19623f0e88df7 and later · before bd3c4ef60baf7f65c963f3e12d9d7b2b091e20baaffected · git
  • 37a3a533429ef9b3cc9f15a656c19623f0e88df7 and later · before e1be1f380c82a69f80c68c96a7cfe8759fb30355affected · git
  • 37a3a533429ef9b3cc9f15a656c19623f0e88df7 and later · before 151c0aa896c47a4459e07fee7d4843f44c1bb18eaffected · git

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

• CVE-2026-31431crypto: algif_aead - Revert to operating out-of-placeKEV
  90Now
• CVE-2022-0847A flaw was found in the way the "flags" member of the new pipe buffer structure was lacking proper initialization in copy_page_to_iter_pipe KEV
  89Now
• CVE-2021-22555Heap Out-Of-Bounds Write in Netfilter IP6T_SO_SET_REPLACEKEV
  85Now

Published before and after this one in the same product

• ← EarlierCVE-2025-38552Aug 16, 2025 · mptcp: plug races between subflow fail and subflow creation
  31Monitor
• ← EarlierCVE-2025-38554Aug 19, 2025 · mm: fix a UAF when vma->mm is freed after vma->vm_refcnt got dropped
  31Monitor
• Later →CVE-2025-38556Aug 19, 2025 · HID: core: Harden s32ton() against conversion to 0 bits
  28Monitor

Root cause

After a memory region is freed, another reference pointing to it is still used. By then, the same region may have been allocated for different data.

A representative example of this vulnerability class. Not the vendor's source code; it shows the faulty pattern and its fix.

1free(dev->buf);2/* ... another thread is still running ... */3process(dev->buf);

1lock(&dev->lock);2free(dev->buf);3dev->buf = NULL;4unlock(&dev->lock);

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.