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NVD / CVE Program· CNA Linux

CVE-2025-68816: net/mlx5: fw_tracer, Validate format string parameters

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 0/100)

  • The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.23% (FIRST EPSS).
  • Fixed version: Linux Linux 38ac688b52ef26a88f8bc4fe26d24fdd0ff91e5d, 45bd283b1d69e2c97cddcb9956f0e0261fc4efd7, 768d559f466cdd72849110a7ecd76a21d52dcfe3; azl3 kernel 6.6.119.3-3 on Azure Linux 3.0 6.6.121.1-1.

Low priority for now. Upgrade to Linux Linux 38ac688b52ef26a88f8bc4fe26d24fdd0ff91e5d, 45bd283b1d69e2c97cddcb9956f0e0261fc4efd7, 768d559f466cdd72849110a7ecd76a21d52dcfe3; azl3 kernel 6.6.119.3-3 on Azure Linux 3.0 6.6.121.1-1 or later.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net/mlx5: fw_tracer, Validate format string parameters Add validation for format string parameters in the firmware tracer to prevent potential security vulnerabilities and crashes from malformed format strings received from firmware. The firmware tracer receives format strings from the device firmware and uses them to format trace messages. Without proper validation, bad firmware could provide format strings with invalid format specifiers (e.g., %s, %p, %n) that could lead to crashes, or other undefined behavior. Add mlx5_tracer_validate_params() to validate that all format specifiers in trace strings are limited to safe integer/hex formats (%x, %d, %i, %u, %llx, %lx, etc.). Reject strings containing other format types that could be used to access arbitrary memory or cause crashes. Invalid format strings are added to the trace output for visibility with "BAD_FORMAT: " prefix.

—No exploit Fix available
Published
Jan 13, 2026
Updated
Oct 19, 2026
EPSS
0.2% · 14th percentile

Report tools

JSON

Action score

0

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
0 / 40 · —
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
0 / 30 · 0.2%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
none
Automatable
no
Technical impact
partial

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

Get told when this record changes

  • Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
  • No public exploit code on record
  • A fix has been released

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  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
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  • when EPSS rises 20 points in a week

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Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.

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Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

—

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

    • 4.19affected
    • 70dd6fdb8987b14f7b6105f6be0617299e459398 and later · before 95624b731c490a4b849844269193a233d6d556a0affected · git
    • 70dd6fdb8987b14f7b6105f6be0617299e459398 and later · before 768d559f466cdd72849110a7ecd76a21d52dcfe3affected · git
    • 70dd6fdb8987b14f7b6105f6be0617299e459398 and later · before 38ac688b52ef26a88f8bc4fe26d24fdd0ff91e5daffected · git
    • 70dd6fdb8987b14f7b6105f6be0617299e459398 and later · before 8ac688c0e430dab19f6a9b70df94b1f635612c1aaffected · git
    • 70dd6fdb8987b14f7b6105f6be0617299e459398 and later · before 45bd283b1d69e2c97cddcb9956f0e0261fc4efd7affected · git
    • 70dd6fdb8987b14f7b6105f6be0617299e459398 and later · before 8c35c2448086870509ede43947845be0833251f0affected · git
    • 70dd6fdb8987b14f7b6105f6be0617299e459398 and later · before b35966042d20b14e2d83330049f77deec5229749affected · git
    • before 4.19not affected · semver
    • 5.10.248 and later · up to and including 5.10.*not affected · semver

Package-level exposure

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

EcosystemPackageAffected rangeFix
Debian:12linuxbefore 6.1.162-16.1.162-1
Debian:13linuxbefore 6.12.69-16.12.69-1
Debian:14linuxbefore 6.18.3-16.18.3-1

Same product

linux: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2026-74705udp: fix potential use-after-free in tunnel segmentation
    40Plan
  • CVE-2026-74612veth: fix skb length accounting after XDP frag adjustment
    40Plan
  • CVE-2026-74475vxlan: use neigh_ha_snapshot() in route_shortcircuit()
    40Plan

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2025-68814Jan 13, 2026 · io_uring: fix filename leak in __io_openat_prep()
    0Monitor
  • ← EarlierCVE-2025-68815Jan 13, 2026 · net/sched: ets: Remove drr class from the active list if it changes to strict
    31Monitor
  • Later →CVE-2025-68818Jan 13, 2026 · scsi: Revert "scsi: qla2xxx: Perform lockless command completion in abort path"
    35Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

Product / packageFixed versionSource
Linux Linux38ac688b52ef26a88f8bc4fe26d24fdd0ff91e5dVendor (CNA)
Linux Linux45bd283b1d69e2c97cddcb9956f0e0261fc4efd7Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux768d559f466cdd72849110a7ecd76a21d52dcfe3Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux8ac688c0e430dab19f6a9b70df94b1f635612c1aVendor (CNA)
Linux Linux8c35c2448086870509ede43947845be0833251f0Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux95624b731c490a4b849844269193a233d6d556a0Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linuxb35966042d20b14e2d83330049f77deec5229749Vendor (CNA)
azl3 kernel 6.6.119.3-3 on Azure Linux 3.06.6.121.1-1 · CBL-Mariner ReleasesMicrosoft (MSRC)
debian:linux6.1.162-1 · Debian:12Package registry (OSV)

Exploit status

No known public exploit

No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

No dated events beyond publication.

No history yet (it accumulates with the daily EPSS job).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

No CVSS vector for this record, so attack conditions can't be derived.

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-134 · Use of Externally-Controlled Format String

Attack context

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

ATT&CK techniques

—

Change log

  1. Fix✗ → ✓

For records you follow, these changes also arrive as notifications. →

References

Show all references (8 more)

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records