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Medium

Use-after-free in Imagination PowerVR GPU kernel driver

IdentifiersCVE-2025-25177CWE-416· Use After Free

CVE-2025-25177 is a high-severity vulnerability affecting Imagination PowerVR GPU components referenced in the December 2025 Android Security Bulletin. The provided description states that software installed and run as a non-privileged user can issue improper GPU system calls that trigger use-after-free kernel exceptions. Based on that description, the flaw is a use-after-free condition in a kernel-mode GPU driver or closely related GPU kernel component, where crafted or improper GPU ioctl/system-call interactions can cause the kernel to access memory after it has been freed. This can destabilize the kernel and may create a path to further exploitation depending on device-specific driver behavior and memory layout.

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ANALYST BRIEF

Impact, mitigation & remediation

What it means. What to do now. Patch path, mitigations, and the assume-compromise checklist.

Impact

What an attacker gets, and what they’ve been doing with it.

Successful exploitation allows a local, non-privileged attacker to trigger kernel exceptions from an unprivileged context through the GPU interface. At minimum, this can result in kernel instability or denial of service. Because the bug is a use-after-free in a kernel-reachable GPU component, it may also present a path to kernel-memory corruption and potential privilege escalation, but the provided content only explicitly supports kernel exceptions and does not confirm reliable code execution or privilege escalation for this CVE.

Mitigation

If you can’t patch tonight, do this now.

Until patched vendor firmware is deployed, reduce exposure by limiting installation of untrusted applications, especially on devices using affected Imagination PowerVR GPU components, because exploitation requires local code execution as a non-privileged user. Enterprise controls such as application allow-listing, managed app stores, and rapid enforcement of the December 2025 Android update can reduce risk. No specific configuration workaround or feature disablement is provided in the supplied content.

Remediation

Patch, then assume compromise.

Apply the December 2025 Android security updates that include the Imagination PowerVR GPU fixes, preferably the 2025-12-05 patch level or later, as that patch level is described as including the additional kernel and vendor-component remediations from the bulletin. Device owners and enterprises should ensure OEM/vendor firmware incorporating the Imagination PowerVR fix for CVE-2025-25177 is installed, since vendor integration schedules may lag behind the base Android patch level.
PUBLIC EXPLOITS

Exploits

No public exploits tracked yet. Mallory keeps watching.

VALID 0 / 0 TOTALView more in app

No public exploit code observed for this vulnerability.

ACTIVITY FEED

Recent activity

6 sources tracked across advisories, community write-ups, and news. New activity surfaces here as Mallory finds it.

6 SOURCESView more in app
What this page doesn’t show

The version that knows your environment.

This page is what’s public. Mallory adds the parts that aren’t: which of your assets are affected, which adversaries are exploiting it right now, which detections to deploy, and what to do tonight.
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Exposure mapping

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Threat actor evidence

Every observed campaign linking this CVE to a named adversary.

Associated malware

Malware families riding this exploit, with evidence and IOCs.

Detection signatures

YARA, Sigma, Snort, and vendor rules, auto-deployed to your SIEM.

Vendor-by-vendor mapping

Cross-references every affected SKU, including bundled OEM variants.

Social activity4

Community discussion across Reddit, Mastodon, and other social sources.

EXTERNAL REFERENCES
MITRE CVE
cve.org · CVE-2025-25177
NVD
nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-25177
MITRE CWE · CWE-416
Use After Free
imaginationtech.com
imaginationtech.com/gpu-driver-vulnerabilities