CVE-2025-23129

What it actually does

Failure to clear IRQ affinity hint before freeing a shared IRQ in the ath11k PCI error path during probe triggers a kernel warning in free_irq.

Why it matters to the business

Driver initialization can log warnings or fail on platforms that use shared IRQs, potentially delaying wireless functionality and increasing support burden in large fleets.

How an attack unfolds

An attacker with local access triggers the ath11k_pci_probe error path on systems using shared MSI IRQs; no privilege escalation or remote code execution is possible from this coding oversight.

How to fix it

Update the Linux kernel to commit 80dc5a2ce5b75d648e08549617f5c555d07ae43c or later; Red Hat users should install python3.11-cryptography-0:37.0.2-5.el8_8.1 or newer packages that contain the corrected driver.

How to confirm the fix worked

Confirm the presence of commit 80dc5a2ce5b75d648e08549617f5c555d07ae43c in the running kernel source and verify that ath11k_pci_probe no longer emits the free_irq warning on shared-IRQ platforms.

Typical attack path

1. Obtain local shell on affected Linux system
2. Trigger ath11k PCI probe failure condition
3. Observe resulting kernel warning in dmesg

How to detect it

Search kernel logs and dmesg for the exact warning string referencing free_irq and ath11k_pcic_free_irq during ath11k_pci_probe; no persistent artifacts remain after reboot.

What your security team should do

• Prioritize kernel updates on systems using ath11k PCI wireless cards
• Monitor dmesg for the free_irq warning during driver load
• Apply the fixed commit or package update within standard patch windows