CVE-2025-38352 Linux CVE debrief

Who should care

Linux distribution maintainers, server and cloud operators, Android and embedded platform teams, and any security or operations group responsible for systems that depend on Linux kernel updates should pay close attention. This is especially important where kernel patching is centralized, delayed, or difficult to roll out quickly.

Technical summary

The supplied records identify the issue as a Linux kernel TOCTOU race condition. In general, TOCTOU flaws involve a check happening at one point and the use of the checked state happening later, creating a race window if the state changes in between. The source corpus does not provide a deeper technical breakdown or affected kernel paths, but CISA’s KEV entry confirms known exploitation and points to official vendor references, including a stable Linux kernel commit and an Android security bulletin.

Defensive priority

High — CISA has placed this vulnerability in the KEV catalog and assigned a remediation due date of 2025-09-25. Prioritize patching or vendor-recommended mitigations immediately.

Recommended defensive actions

• Verify whether your Linux kernel builds, derivatives, or embedded products are affected.
• Apply vendor-provided patches or mitigations as soon as they are available.
• Track CISA’s KEV due date of 2025-09-25 and treat it as an operational deadline.
• If you manage cloud or hosted environments, confirm whether the provider has already remediated the issue.
• Use the official vendor references linked from the KEV entry to confirm patch status for specific products and releases.

Evidence notes

The supplied source item is the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities feed entry for CVE-2025-38352, titled 'Linux Kernel Time-of-Check Time-of-Use (TOCTOU) Race Condition Vulnerability.' The record lists dateAdded as 2025-09-04, dueDate as 2025-09-25, and requiredAction as applying vendor mitigations or discontinuing use if mitigations are unavailable. The metadata notes also reference an official Linux stable kernel commit and the Android security bulletin as supporting vendor references. No CVSS score was supplied in the corpus.

Official resources