Accelerated Linux page cache attacks detailed

Significantly more efficient intrusions exploiting page caches could be launched against Linux systems, SecurityWeek reports.

Time to perform flushing, or the removal of a page from the cache, has dropped from 149 milliseconds to only 0.8 microseconds, with the attack loop completed in just 0.6 to 2.3 microseconds, which is five to six times faster than older page cache intrusions, according to a study by researchers from Austria's Graz University of Technology. Additional findings revealed that tracking binary-linked memory pages could enable more precise deployments of synchronized phishing overlays or keyloggers, while inter-keystroke timing attacks could aid in procuring passwords and other sensitive details.

Other Linux page cache attack techniques could allow insights into files with container access in a Docker environment, as well as the discovery of specific user actions through the Discord app. Researchers also identified page cache monitoring in Firefox to discover users' visited websites. Only the CVE-2025-21691 issue has been remediated by the Linux kernel security team.