CVE-2025-37956: Linux kernel · ksmbd: prevent rename with empty string
Affects Linux kernelSource GCVE Database
Not known to be exploited · CVSS 8.8 High.
Data as of 30 Oct 2026, 14:05 UTC
Thin evidence
One scorer or none| CNA (Linux) | CVSS 3.1 | 8.8 |
|---|
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 30 Oct 2026.
What to do
AI-suggested
A patch has been applied to the Linux kernel ksmbd component that prevents rename operations with an empty new name string by returning an error. Users should update their Linux kernel to a version including this fix once available. Since no specific fixed versions are provided, check the official Linux kernel advisories for the patch and apply it promptly.
Description
CVE-2025-37956 is a high severity vulnerability in the Linux kernel's ksmbd server component. It allows a client to send an empty string as the new name in a rename operation, which triggers a kernel oops due to improper handling in the d_alloc function. This can lead to denial of service or potentially other impacts due to kernel instability. The issue has been resolved by patching ksmbd to return an error when an empty new name string is provided during rename attempts.
References
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/35e2964e93d95185d2db0c0ffd9959d0197b3956 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/6ee551672c8cf36108b0cfba92ec0c7c28ac3439 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/c57301e332cc413fe0a7294a90725f4e21e9549d (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/d7f2c00acb1ef64304fd40ac507e9213ff1d9b5c (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/53e3e5babc0963a92d856a5ec0ce92c59f54bc12 (opens in a new tab)