CVE-2025-21948: Software Security Vulnerability Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-jxxv-c48x-753p
CVSS 5.5
CWE-476
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2025-21948 is a MODERATE (CVSS 5.5) security vulnerability vulnerability (CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference) affecting Software libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The weakness occurs when the product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is null.. Remediation is available in the latest vendor maintenance releases.

CVE-2025-21948 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2025-21948
GHSA Identifier GHSA-jxxv-c48x-753p
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 5.5
CWE Classification CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference
Affected Product Software
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 5.5

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H).

Attack Vector Local (AV:L)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required Low (PR:L)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality None (C:N)
Integrity None (I:N)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2025-21948

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Software dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release:

mvn dependency:tree

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2025-21948, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Software in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than the patched release), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree command inspects the resolved dependency graph declared in your project's POM files; it does not perform automated security scanning or inspect runtime dynamic classpaths. Always verify runtime container classpaths and shaded JARs.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference, where the product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is null. In Software, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: HID: appleir: Fix potential NULL dereference at raw event handle Syzkaller reports a NULL pointer dereference issue in input_event(). BUG: KASAN: null-ptr-deref in instrument_atomic_read include/linux/instrumented.h:68 [inline] BUG: KASAN: null-ptr-deref in _test_bit include/asm-generic/bitops/instrumented-non-atomic.h:141 [inline] BUG: KASAN: null-ptr-deref in is_event_supported drivers/input/input.c:67 [inline] BUG: KASAN: null-ptr-deref in input_event+0x42/0xa0 drivers/input/input.c:395 Read of size 8 at addr 0000000000000028 by task syz-executor199/2949 CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 2949 Comm: syz-executor199 Not tainted 6.13.0-rc4-syzkaller-00076-gf097a36ef88d #0 Hardware name: Google Google Compute Engine/Google Compute Engine, BIOS Google 09/13/2024 Call Trace: <IRQ> __dump_stack lib/dump_stack.c:94 [inline] dump_stack_lvl+0x116/0x1f0 lib/dump_stack.c:120 kasan_report+0xd9/0x110 mm/kasan/report.c:602 check_region_inline mm/kasan/generic.c:183 [inline] kasan_check_range+0xef/0x1a0 mm/kasan/generic.c:189 instrument_atomic_read include/linux/instrumented.h:68 [inline] _test_bit include/asm-generic/bitops/instrumented-non-atomic.h:141 [inline] is_event_supported drivers/input/input.c:67 [inline] input_event+0x42/0xa0 drivers/input/input.c:395 input_report_key include/linux/input.h:439 [inline] key_down drivers/hid/hid-appleir.c:159 [inline] appleir_raw_event+0x3e5/0x5e0 drivers/hid/hid-appleir.c:232 __hid_input_report.constprop.0+0x312/0x440 drivers/hid/hid-core.c:2111 hid_ctrl+0x49f/0x550 drivers/hid/usbhid/hid-core.c:484 __usb_hcd_giveback_urb+0x389/0x6e0 drivers/usb/core/hcd.c:1650 usb_hcd_giveback_urb+0x396/0x450 drivers/usb/core/hcd.c:1734 dummy_timer+0x17f7/0x3960 drivers/usb/gadget/udc/dummy_hcd.c:1993 __run_hrtimer kernel/time/hrtimer.c:1739 [inline] __hrtimer_run_queues+0x20a/0xae0 kernel/time/hrtimer.c:1803 hrtimer_run_softirq+0x17d/0x350 kernel/time/hrtimer.c:1820 handle_softirqs+0x206/0x8d0 kernel/softirq.c:561 __do_softirq kernel/softirq.c:595 [inline] invoke_softirq kernel/softirq.c:435 [inline] __irq_exit_rcu+0xfa/0x160 kernel/softirq.c:662 irq_exit_rcu+0x9/0x30 kernel/softirq.c:678 instr_sysvec_apic_timer_interrupt arch/x86/kernel/apic/apic.c:1049 [inline] sysvec_apic_timer_interrupt+0x90/0xb0 arch/x86/kernel/apic/apic.c:1049 </IRQ> <TASK> asm_sysvec_apic_timer_interrupt+0x1a/0x20 arch/x86/include/asm/idtentry.h:702 __mod_timer+0x8f6/0xdc0 kernel/time/timer.c:1185 add_timer+0x62/0x90 kernel/time/timer.c:1295 schedule_timeout+0x11f/0x280 kernel/time/sleep_timeout.c:98 usbhid_wait_io+0x1c7/0x380 drivers/hid/usbhid/hid-core.c:645 usbhid_init_reports+0x19f/0x390 drivers/hid/usbhid/hid-core.c:784 hiddev_ioctl+0x1133/0x15b0 drivers/hid/usbhid/hiddev.c:794 vfs_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:51 [inline] __do_sys_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:906 [inline] __se_sys_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:892 [inline] __x64_sys_ioctl+0x190/0x200 fs/ioctl.c:892 do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/common.c:52 [inline] do_syscall_64+0xcd/0x250 arch/x86/entry/common.c:83 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f </TASK> This happens due to the malformed report items sent by the emulated device which results in a report, that has no fields, being added to the report list. Due to this appleir_input_configured() is never called, hidinput_connect() fails which results in the HID_CLAIMED_INPUT flag is not being set. However, it does not make appleir_probe() fail and lets the event callback to be called without the associated input device. Thus, add a check for the HID_CLAIMED_INPUT flag and leave the event hook early if the driver didn't claim any input_dev for some reason. Moreover, some other hid drivers accessing input_dev in their event callbacks do have similar checks, too. Found by Linux Verification Center (linuxtesting.org) with Syzkaller.

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2025-21948?
CVE-2025-21948 is a security vulnerability in Software classified as a security vulnerability vulnerability under CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference.
Which Software versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to current release patches.
What version fixes CVE-2025-21948?
Upgrading to current release patches (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2025-21948?
CVE-2025-21948 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 5.5 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2025-21948?
CVE-2025-21948 is classified under CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference (The product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is NULL.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2025-21948?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-jxxv-c48x-753p",
  "modified" : "2025-11-03T21:33:25Z",
  "published" : "2025-04-01T18:30:52Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2025-21948" ],
  "details" : "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nHID: appleir: Fix potential NULL dereference at raw event handle\n\nSyzkaller reports a NULL pointer dereference issue in input_event().\n\nBUG: KASAN: null-ptr-deref in instrument_atomic_read include/linux/instrumented.h:68 [inline]\nBUG: KASAN: null-ptr-deref in _test_bit include/asm-generic/bitops/instrumented-non-atomic.h:141 [inline]\nBUG: KASAN: null-ptr-deref in is_event_supported drivers/input/input.c:67 [inline]\nBUG: KASAN: null-ptr-deref in input_event+0x42/0xa0 drivers/input/input.c:395\nRead of size 8 at addr 0000000000000028 by task syz-executor199/2949\n\nCPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 2949 Comm: syz-executor199 Not tainted 6.13.0-rc4-syzkaller-00076-gf097a36ef88d #0\nHardware name: Google Google Compute Engine/Google Compute Engine, BIOS Google 09/13/2024\nCall Trace:\n <IRQ>\n __dump_stack lib/dump_stack.c:94 [inline]\n dump_stack_lvl+0x116/0x1f0 lib/dump_stack.c:120\n kasan_report+0xd9/0x110 mm/kasan/report.c:602\n check_region_inline mm/kasan/generic.c:183 [inline]\n kasan_check_range+0xef/0x1a0 mm/kasan/generic.c:189\n instrument_atomic_read include/linux/instrumented.h:68 [inline]\n _test_bit include/asm-generic/bitops/instrumented-non-atomic.h:141 [inline]\n is_event_supported drivers/input/input.c:67 [inline]\n input_event+0x42/0xa0 drivers/input/input.c:395\n input_report_key include/linux/input.h:439 [inline]\n key_down drivers/hid/hid-appleir.c:159 [inline]\n appleir_raw_event+0x3e5/0x5e0 drivers/hid/hid-appleir.c:232\n __hid_input_report.constprop.0+0x312/0x440 drivers/hid/hid-core.c:2111\n hid_ctrl+0x49f/0x550 drivers/hid/usbhid/hid-core.c:484\n __usb_hcd_giveback_urb+0x389/0x6e0 drivers/usb/core/hcd.c:1650\n usb_hcd_giveback_urb+0x396/0x450 drivers/usb/core/hcd.c:1734\n dummy_timer+0x17f7/0x3960 drivers/usb/gadget/udc/dummy_hcd.c:1993\n __run_hrtimer kernel/time/hrtimer.c:1739 [inline]\n __hrtimer_run_queues+0x20a/0xae0 kernel/time/hrtimer.c:1803\n hrtimer_run_softirq+0x17d/0x350 kernel/time/hrtimer.c:1820\n handle_softirqs+0x206/0x8d0 kernel/softirq.c:561\n __do_softirq kernel/softirq.c:595 [inline]\n invoke_softirq kernel/softirq.c:435 [inline]\n __irq_exit_rcu+0xfa/0x160 kernel/softirq.c:662\n irq_exit_rcu+0x9/0x30 kernel/softirq.c:678\n instr_sysvec_apic_timer_interrupt arch/x86/kernel/apic/apic.c:1049 [inline]\n sysvec_apic_timer_interrupt+0x90/0xb0 arch/x86/kernel/apic/apic.c:1049\n </IRQ>\n <TASK>\n asm_sysvec_apic_timer_interrupt+0x1a/0x20 arch/x86/include/asm/idtentry.h:702\n __mod_timer+0x8f6/0xdc0 kernel/time/timer.c:1185\n add_timer+0x62/0x90 kernel/time/timer.c:1295\n schedule_timeout+0x11f/0x280 kernel/time/sleep_timeout.c:98\n usbhid_wait_io+0x1c7/0x380 drivers/hid/usbhid/hid-core.c:645\n usbhid_init_reports+0x19f/0x390 drivers/hid/usbhid/hid-core.c:784\n hiddev_ioctl+0x1133/0x15b0 drivers/hid/usbhid/hiddev.c:794\n vfs_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:51 [inline]\n __do_sys_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:906 [inline]\n __se_sys_ioctl fs/ioctl.c:892 [inline]\n __x64_sys_ioctl+0x190/0x200 fs/ioctl.c:892\n do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/common.c:52 [inline]\n do_syscall_64+0xcd/0x250 arch/x86/entry/common.c:83\n entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f\n </TASK>\n\nThis happens due to the malformed report items sent by the emulated device\nwhich results in a report, that has no fields, being added to the report list.\nDue to this appleir_input_configured() is never called, hidinput_connect()\nfails which results in the HID_CLAIMED_INPUT flag is not being set. However,\nit  does not make appleir_probe() fail and lets the event callback to be\ncalled without the associated input device.\n\nThus, add a check for the HID_CLAIMED_INPUT flag and leave the event hook\nearly if the driver didn't claim any input_dev for some reason. Moreover,\nsome other hid drivers accessing input_dev in their event callbacks do have\nsimilar checks, too.\n\nFound by Linux Verification Center (linuxtesting.org) with Syzkaller.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-21948"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0df1ac8ee417ad76760ff076faa4518a4d861894"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2ff5baa9b5275e3acafdf7f2089f74cccb2f38d1"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/68cdf6710f228dfd74f66ec61fbe636da2646a73"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6db423b00940b05df2a1265d3c7eabafe9f1734c"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8d39eb8c5e14f2f0f441eed832ef8a7b654e6fee"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b1d95d733cd6e74f595653daddcfc357bea461e8"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d335fce8b88b2353f4bb20c631698e20384e3610"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/fc69e2c3219d433caabba4b5d6371ba726a4b37f"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2025/05/msg00030.html"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2025/05/msg00045.html"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-476" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : false,
    "github_reviewed_at" : null,
    "nvd_published_at" : "2025-04-01T16:15:25Z"
  }
}