CVE-2025-5024: GNOME Remote Desktop DoS Vulnerability

CVE-2025-5024 Overview

A resource exhaustion vulnerability has been identified in gnome-remote-desktop, the GNOME project's remote desktop protocol (RDP) server implementation. Once gnome-remote-desktop is configured to listen for RDP connections, an unauthenticated attacker can exhaust system resources and repeatedly crash the process. The vulnerability may result in a persistent resource leak after repeated attacks, which can prevent gnome-remote-desktop from opening files even after systemd restarts the service.

Critical Impact
Unauthenticated attackers can cause denial of service conditions that persist across service restarts, potentially rendering remote desktop functionality permanently unavailable until manual intervention.

Affected Products

gnome-remote-desktop (RDP server component)
GNOME Desktop Environment systems with RDP enabled
Red Hat Enterprise Linux and related distributions running gnome-remote-desktop

Discovery Timeline

May 22, 2025 - CVE-2025-5024 published to NVD
August 12, 2025 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-5024

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-400 (Uncontrolled Resource Consumption), indicating that the gnome-remote-desktop service fails to properly limit resource allocation when handling incoming RDP connection requests. The flaw allows remote, unauthenticated attackers to trigger resource exhaustion conditions by sending malicious or malformed RDP traffic to the listening service.

The attack requires user interaction to be fully successful (requiring the victim to have RDP enabled and listening), but once these conditions are met, the attacker can operate from a network position without any authentication. The vulnerability has a changed scope, meaning the impact extends beyond the vulnerable component itself to affect the broader system's ability to function normally.

Root Cause

The root cause stems from improper resource management within gnome-remote-desktop's RDP connection handling logic. When processing incoming connection attempts, the service allocates system resources (such as file descriptors and memory) without adequate bounds checking or cleanup mechanisms. After sustained attack activity, these resources accumulate and leak, eventually preventing the service from functioning correctly even after automated restart attempts by systemd.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based, requiring the attacker to be able to reach the RDP listening port on the target system. The attack methodology involves:

Identifying systems running gnome-remote-desktop with RDP enabled
Sending repeated malicious connection attempts to the RDP service
Causing the service to crash repeatedly, exhausting system resources
Eventually causing a persistent denial of service condition where file descriptors are depleted

The vulnerability can be exploited by sending crafted RDP protocol packets that trigger resource allocation without proper cleanup. Over time, this leads to file descriptor exhaustion that persists across service restarts. Technical details regarding the specific exploitation mechanism can be found in the GNOME Merge Request #321 that addresses this issue.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-5024

Indicators of Compromise

Repeated crash events in gnome-remote-desktop service logs
Increasing file descriptor usage on systems running the RDP service
Errors indicating inability to open files after service restart
Unusual network traffic patterns targeting RDP ports from external sources
systemd journal entries showing rapid restart cycles of gnome-remote-desktop

Detection Strategies

Monitor systemd journal logs for gnome-remote-desktop crash patterns using journalctl -u gnome-remote-desktop
Implement network intrusion detection rules for anomalous RDP connection attempts
Track file descriptor usage trends on systems with RDP enabled using /proc/[pid]/fd monitoring
Configure SIEM alerts for repeated service failure and restart events

Monitoring Recommendations

Enable verbose logging for gnome-remote-desktop to capture connection attempt details
Set up threshold alerts for service restart frequency exceeding normal operational bounds
Monitor system resource utilization including memory, file descriptors, and socket usage
Implement network flow analysis to detect sustained connection floods to RDP ports

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-5024

Immediate Actions Required

Apply available security patches from Red Hat or your Linux distribution vendor
Disable gnome-remote-desktop RDP functionality if not required for operations
Implement network access controls to restrict RDP access to trusted IP ranges only
Enable firewall rules to rate-limit incoming connections to RDP ports

Patch Information

Red Hat has released multiple security advisories addressing this vulnerability:

The fix is also tracked in GNOME Merge Request #321 and Red Hat Bugzilla #2367717. Consult the Red Hat CVE Report for additional details.

Workarounds

Disable RDP listening in gnome-remote-desktop if the feature is not required
Restrict network access to the RDP service using firewall rules to allow only trusted hosts
Implement connection rate limiting at the network perimeter to prevent resource exhaustion attacks
Consider using VPN-only access for remote desktop functionality to reduce attack surface

bash

# Disable gnome-remote-desktop RDP service
systemctl --user stop gnome-remote-desktop
systemctl --user disable gnome-remote-desktop

# Firewall rule to restrict RDP access (example using firewalld)
firewall-cmd --permanent --add-rich-rule='rule family="ipv4" source address="TRUSTED_IP/32" port protocol="tcp" port="3389" accept'
firewall-cmd --permanent --add-rich-rule='rule family="ipv4" port protocol="tcp" port="3389" drop'
firewall-cmd --reload