Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:HSummary
CVE-2025-69647 is a medium-severity Infinite Loop (CWE-835) vulnerability in Gnu Binutils. Its CVSS base score is 6.2 (Medium).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Application or System Exploitation (T1499.004); ranked at the 5th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SI-2 (Flaw Remediation) and SI-4 (System Monitoring) — see the control section below for these in your framework.
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2025-208411
Vulnerability Data
GNU Binutils thru 2.45.1 readelf contains a denial-of-service vulnerability when processing a crafted binary with malformed DWARF loclists data. A logic flaw in the DWARF parsing code can cause readelf to repeatedly print the same table output without making forward…
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progress, resulting in an unbounded output loop that never terminates unless externally interrupted. A local attacker can trigger this behavior by supplying a malicious input file, causing excessive CPU and I/O usage and preventing readelf from completing its analysis.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise TechniquesAI
Why these techniques?
Infinite loop DoS in readelf via crafted DWARF input directly matches application exploitation for endpoint DoS.
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Directly requires applying patches or updates to remediate the infinite-loop flaw in readelf's DWARF loclists parser before a malicious binary can be processed.
Enables monitoring of process behavior (CPU, I/O, or output volume) to identify when readelf enters the unbounded output loop triggered by malformed input.
Restricts execution of the vulnerable readelf binary or limits its use to only trusted, pre-validated files, reducing exposure to crafted DWARF data.
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Security testing can uncover infinite-loop conditions before release.
Secure development life cycle mandates practices that can detect and prevent infinite-loop defects.
Application security requirements can specify loop-termination rules, indirectly reducing the weakness.
Secure coding standards directly address loop termination and prevent infinite loops.
Secure architecture principles encourage designs that avoid unreachable exit conditions.
Change management can require review of loop logic when code is modified.