CVE-2025-38566: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sunrpc: fix handling of server side tls alerts Scott Mayhew discovered a security exploit

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sunrpc: fix handling of server side tls alerts Scott Mayhew discovered a security exploit

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sunrpc: fix handling of server side tls alerts Scott Mayhew discovered a security exploit in NFS over TLS in tls_alert_recv() due to its assumption it can read data from the msg iterator's kvec.. kTLS implementation splits TLS non-data record payload between the control message buffer (which includes the type such as TLS aler or TLS cipher change) and the rest of the payload (say TLS alert's level/description) which goes into the msg payload buffer. This patch proposes to rework how control messages are setup and used by sock_recvmsg(). If no control message structure is setup, kTLS layer will read and process TLS data record types. As soon as it encounters a TLS control message, it would return an error. At that point, NFS can setup a kvec backed msg buffer and read in the control message such as a TLS alert. Msg iterator can advance the kvec pointer as a part of the copy process thus we need to revert the iterator before calling into the tls_alert_recv.

Description from the National Vulnerability Database, published by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

What it means for a small business

Linux is on the computers, phones or browsers your team uses every day. Turn on automatic updates and restart: most of these fixes only take effect after a restart.

How likely is an attack? The Exploit Prediction Scoring System, run by FIRST (the global association of security response teams), puts the odds of this one being exploited in the next 30 days at 0.63%, higher than 50% of CVEs. That’s low, but low isn’t zero, and the odds jump the day someone publishes an exploit. Scored November 2, 2026, updated daily.

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Sources

Part of the Huttenlocher Technologies vulnerability database, refreshed twice a day from CISA and the NVD. The title, category and plain-language guidance are ours; check the linked record before acting on a detail. This is general guidance, not a review of your systems.

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