CVE-2025-0015: Arm 5th Gen GPU Driver Use-After-Free Flaw

CVE-2025-0015 Overview

CVE-2025-0015 is a Use After Free vulnerability affecting Arm Ltd Valhall GPU Kernel Driver and Arm 5th Gen GPU Architecture Kernel Driver. This memory corruption flaw allows a local non-privileged user process to perform improper GPU processing operations, resulting in access to already freed memory. The vulnerability stems from improper memory management within the GPU kernel drivers, creating an exploitable condition that could lead to privilege escalation, information disclosure, or system instability.

Critical Impact

Local attackers with low privileges can exploit improper GPU memory handling to access freed memory, potentially leading to privilege escalation, arbitrary code execution, or sensitive information disclosure on affected systems.

Affected Products

• Arm Valhall GPU Kernel Driver: versions r48p0 through r49p1, and r50p0 through r52p0
• Arm 5th Gen GPU Architecture Kernel Driver: versions r48p0 through r49p1, and r50p0 through r52p0

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-02-03 - CVE-2025-0015 published to NVD
• 2025-12-18 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-0015

Vulnerability Analysis

This Use After Free (CWE-416) vulnerability exists in the memory management routines of Arm's GPU kernel drivers. The flaw occurs when the driver fails to properly track memory allocations and deallocations during GPU processing operations. When a memory region is freed but references to it remain active, subsequent GPU operations can access this stale memory reference, leading to use of dangling pointers.

The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it can be triggered by a local non-privileged user process. This means that any user with local access to a system running the affected GPU drivers could potentially exploit this vulnerability without requiring elevated permissions. The impact spans confidentiality, integrity, and availability, as successful exploitation could allow an attacker to read sensitive kernel memory, corrupt memory contents, or cause system crashes.

Root Cause

The root cause of CVE-2025-0015 lies in improper memory lifecycle management within the GPU kernel driver. During GPU processing operations, the driver fails to adequately synchronize memory allocation and deallocation with active memory references. This creates a race condition or logical error where memory can be freed while still being referenced by ongoing or pending GPU operations, resulting in a classic Use After Free condition.

Attack Vector

The attack vector for CVE-2025-0015 is local, requiring the attacker to have local access to the target system. The exploitation process involves:

1. A local non-privileged user initiates GPU processing operations through standard driver interfaces
2. The attacker crafts specific GPU operations designed to trigger the improper memory handling
3. Through carefully timed or specially constructed requests, the attacker causes memory to be freed while references remain active
4. Subsequent GPU operations access the freed memory, allowing the attacker to potentially read sensitive data, corrupt memory, or execute arbitrary code in kernel context

The vulnerability does not require any user interaction and can be exploited with low attack complexity once local access is obtained. Detailed technical information is available in the ARM Mali GPU Driver Vulnerabilities advisory.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-0015

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected GPU driver crashes or kernel panics related to memory access violations
• Anomalous GPU memory allocation and deallocation patterns in system logs
• Unusual processes accessing GPU driver interfaces with repeated memory operations
• Kernel memory corruption symptoms or unexpected privilege escalation events

Detection Strategies

• Monitor system logs for GPU driver-related errors, particularly memory access violations or segmentation faults
• Implement kernel-level monitoring to detect suspicious ioctl calls to GPU driver interfaces
• Deploy endpoint detection solutions capable of identifying exploitation attempts targeting GPU kernel drivers
• Audit local user processes for unusual GPU driver interaction patterns

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable verbose logging for GPU kernel driver operations where available
• Monitor for processes making excessive or unusual GPU memory allocation requests
• Implement behavioral analysis to detect patterns consistent with Use After Free exploitation attempts
• Review system stability metrics for GPU-related kernel crashes or instabilities

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-0015

Immediate Actions Required

• Update Arm Valhall GPU Kernel Driver and Arm 5th Gen GPU Architecture Kernel Driver to the latest patched versions
• Review systems for any signs of exploitation or unusual GPU-related behavior
• Limit local access to systems running affected GPU drivers to trusted users only
• Monitor affected systems closely until patches can be applied

Patch Information

Arm has released updated versions of the affected GPU kernel drivers that address this vulnerability. Organizations should obtain the latest driver versions from Arm's official channels. Refer to the ARM Mali GPU Driver Vulnerabilities page for specific patch information and download links.

Affected version ranges:

• Valhall GPU Kernel Driver: r48p0 through r49p1, and r50p0 through r52p0
• Arm 5th Gen GPU Architecture Kernel Driver: r48p0 through r49p1, and r50p0 through r52p0

Workarounds

• Restrict local user access to systems with affected GPU drivers to minimize attack surface
• Implement strict access controls on GPU device nodes to limit which users can interact with the driver
• Consider temporarily disabling GPU functionality on critical systems if feasible until patches are applied
• Deploy application whitelisting to prevent unauthorized processes from interacting with GPU drivers

# Example: Restrict GPU device node permissions (temporary mitigation)
# Review and adjust based on your specific environment and requirements
chmod 660 /dev/mali*
chown root:gpu /dev/mali*
# Only users in the 'gpu' group will have access to the GPU device