CVE-2025-37917: Linux kernel · net: ethernet: mtk-star-emac: fix spinlock recursion issues on rx/tx poll
Affects Linux kernelSource GCVE Database
Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.5 High.
Data as of 10 Nov 2026, 13:36 UTC
Thin evidence
One scorer or none| CNA (Linux) | CVSS 3.1 | 7.5 |
|---|
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:HExploitation evidence
Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 20 May 2025
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors
A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 10 Nov 2026.
What to do
AI-suggested
A fix for this vulnerability has been implemented in the Linux kernel by changing the locking mechanism in the mtk-star-emac driver to use spin_lock_irqsave and spin_unlock_irqrestore. Users should update to the fixed kernel version once available. Since no specific fixed versions are provided, check the official Linux kernel advisories or repositories for the patch and apply it promptly to mitigate the issue.
Description
CVE-2025-37917 addresses a spinlock recursion issue in the mtk-star-emac Ethernet driver within the Linux kernel. The vulnerability arises from improper use of spin_lock and spin_unlock in the rx/tx poll functions, which can cause kernel crashes due to spinlock recursion. The fix involves replacing these calls with spin_lock_irqsave and spin_unlock_irqrestore to prevent recursion when enabling DMA interrupts.
References
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/bedd287fdd3142dffad7ae2ac6ef15f4a2ad0629 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/94107259f972d2fd896dbbcaa176b3b2451ff9e5 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/7cb10f17bddc415f30fbc00a4e2b490e0d94c462 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/8d40bf73fa7f31eac2b0a7c9d85de67df82ee7f3 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/d886f8d85494d12b2752fd7c6c32162d982d5dd5 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/6fe0866014486736cc3ba1c6fd4606d3dbe55c9c (opens in a new tab)
- lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2025/08/msg00010.html (opens in a new tab)
- cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/html/ssa-019113.html (opens in a new tab)
- cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/html/ssa-457936.html (opens in a new tab)