Text Patching Vulnerability in Linux Kernel Affecting PowerPC Systems

CVE-2025-21866

Summary

A vulnerability exists in the Linux kernel related to text patching in PowerPC systems. An improper flagging of a virtual memory area as VM_ALLOC without proper initialization led to out-of-bounds memory access. This issue was observed when a KASAN-enabled kernel attempted to access an uninitialized memory area during the boot process. The flaw stemmed from a mismanagement in the memory allocation strategy for the PowerPC text patching infrastructure, risking operational integrity and stability. Developers and system administrators using affected kernel versions should apply updates to address this vulnerability.

References