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CVE

CVE-2025-22225

VMware ESXi Arbitrary Write Vulnerability

VMware ESXi contains an arbitrary write vulnerability. A malicious actor with privileges within the VMX process may trigger an arbitrary kernel write leading to an escape of the sandbox.

HIGH · CVSS 8.2 ⚠ CISA KEV EPSS 0.09781 Ransomware: known
Act now
  • Listed on CISA KEV (known exploited in the wild)
  • Linked to known ransomware campaigns
  • SSVC exploitation status: active
  • EPSS percentile: top 7% of all CVEs by exploitation likelihood
  • CVSS base score ≥ 7.0
Sigma rules8 YARA rules0
⬢

Required Remediation

Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

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Weakness Classification

CWE-123Write-what-where Condition
CWE-787Out-of-bounds Write
▤

Affected Products & Versions

4
vmware esxiall versions
vmware cloud foundationall versions
vmware telco cloud infrastructureall versions
vmware telco cloud platformall versions
◈

Sigma Hunt Rules

8
Exact rules name this CVE ID. Product rules name an affected product in their title. Related rules cover techniques used by actors who exploited this CVE. Showing the most relevant matches; the complete related set is on the full drill-down.
producthighESXi Admin Permission Assigned To Account Via ESXCLI
productmediumESXi Storage Information Discovery Via ESXCLI
productmediumESXi Network Configuration Discovery Via ESXCLI
productmediumESXi VSAN Information Discovery Via ESXCLI
productmediumESXi System Information Discovery Via ESXCLI
productmediumESXi VM Kill Via ESXCLI
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Scoring & Timeline

8.2
HIGH · CVSS v3.1 · security@vmware.com
View on NVD
Attack Vector
Network Adjacent Local Physical
Attack Complexity
Low High
Privileges Required
None Low High
User Interaction
None Required
Scope
Unchanged Changed
Confidentiality
None Low High
Integrity
None Low High
Availability
None Low High
Published to NVD04 Mar 2025 · 12:15 PM
CVSS VectorCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
SSVC triage · cisa-vulnrichment
Exploitation
active
Automatable
no
Technical impact
total
SSVC asks the questions that actually drive patch urgency: is it being exploited, can attacks be automated, and how total is the impact.
⚑

Vendor Advisories

3
cisaKEV-CVE-2025-22225
vmware-vmsavmware-vmsa-security-advisories-vmsa-2025-0004-README
cisa-csafcisa-csaf-csaf_files-OT-white-2025-icsa-25-077-02
🔗

References & Sources

1
Source URLs (vendor pages, mailing lists, write-ups). Exploit/PoC links are in their own section above to avoid duplication.
https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2025-22225US Government Resource
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