GNU Binutils CVEs Impact Multiple Ubuntu Releases, Allow DoS and RCE

CVE-2025-11839, CVE-2025-11840, CVE-2025-8225, and several related flaws in GNU binutils have been patched across Ubuntu releases 14.04 through 25.10, addressing denial-of-service and potential remote code execution risks in assemblers, linkers, and binary utilities. Ubuntu Security Notice USN-7899-1 describes multiple input-handling issues in binutils and ld that can trigger out-of-bounds reads, crashes, information exposure, or arbitrary code execution when parsing specially crafted object files or binaries, mapped to MITRE ATT&CK technique T1203 (Exploitation for Client Execution). The affected versions span binutils 2.24 through 2.45, with some vulnerabilities limited to specific LTS releases but collectively impacting a large installed base of developer and build environments. While exploitation typically requires an attacker to convince a user or CI system to process malicious input with objdump, ld, or other binutils tools, the ubiquity of these utilities in compilers, linkers, and binary analysis pipelines makes them attractive targets for supply chain compromise. Older Ubuntu LTS releases such as 14.04, 16.04, 18.04, and 20.04 are affected by multiple issues, including CVE-2025-5244 and CVE-2025-5245, which may enable arbitrary code execution, while newer releases like 25.04 and 25.10 are impacted by out-of-bounds read and crash-inducing bugs. Organizations relying on extended security maintenance (ESM) for legacy LTS versions must ensure their binutils packages are updated to the patched builds. From a business perspective, successful exploitation in build systems or developer workstations could inject backdoors into compiled binaries, corrupt critical artifacts, or disrupt CI/CD pipelines, contributing to broader software supply chain compromise. Regulatory pressure and customer expectations around software integrity—especially in sectors following NIST, ISO 27001, or emerging software bill-of-materials requirements—mean unpatched toolchains can become a compliance and trust liability. Mitigation starts with applying the updated binutils packages listed in USN-7899-1 across all supported Ubuntu versions, ensuring both standard and multiarch variants are upgraded. Security teams should also harden build pipelines by restricting untrusted binary inputs, containerizing toolchains, and integrating static and dynamic analysis that flags anomalous object files. Where legacy LTS releases rely on Ubuntu Pro/ESM channels, organizations should verify entitlement and automatic security updates for compiler and linker toolchains as part of their supply chain security posture.