VMware ESXi/Workstation/Fusion: OOB Read in HGFS Enables VM Memory Disclosure
CVE-2025-22226 Published on March 4, 2025
VMware ESXi, Workstation, and Fusion contain an information disclosure vulnerability due to an out-of-bounds read in HGFS. A malicious actor with administrative privileges to a virtual machine may be able to exploit this issue to leak memory from the vmx process.
Known Exploited Vulnerability
This VMware ESXi, Workstation, and Fusion Information Disclosure Vulnerability is part of CISA's list of Known Exploited Vulnerabilities. VMware ESXi, Workstation, and Fusion contain an information disclosure vulnerability due to an out-of-bounds read in HGFS. Successful exploitation allows an attacker with administrative privileges to a virtual machine to leak memory from the vmx process.
The following remediation steps are recommended / required by March 25, 2025: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.
Vulnerability Analysis
CVE-2025-22226 is exploitable with local system access, and does not require authorization privileges or user interaction. This vulnerability is considered to have a low attack complexity. This vulnerability is known to be actively exploited by threat actors. The potential impact of an exploit of this vulnerability is considered to have a high impact on confidentiality, with no impact on integrity and availability.
Weakness Type
Out-of-bounds Read
The software reads data past the end, or before the beginning, of the intended buffer. Typically, this can allow attackers to read sensitive information from other memory locations or cause a crash. A crash can occur when the code reads a variable amount of data and assumes that a sentinel exists to stop the read operation, such as a NUL in a string. The expected sentinel might not be located in the out-of-bounds memory, causing excessive data to be read, leading to a segmentation fault or a buffer overflow. The software may modify an index or perform pointer arithmetic that references a memory location that is outside of the boundaries of the buffer. A subsequent read operation then produces undefined or unexpected results.
Products Associated with CVE-2025-22226
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Exploit Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) scores estimate the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. The percentile shows you how this score compares to all other vulnerabilities.