CVE-2017-0308
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedAll versions of NVIDIA Windows GPU Display Driver contain a vulnerability in the kernel mode layer (nvlddmkm.sys) handler for DxgkDdiEscape where untrusted input is used for buffer size calculation leading to denial of service or escalation of privileges.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceNVIDIA Windows GPU Display Driver contains a kernel-mode vulnerability in nvlddmkm.sys where the DxgkDdiEscape handler uses untrusted input to calculate buffer sizes. This improper bounds checking can lead to buffer overflows enabling denial of service (system crash) or local privilege escalation to kernel-level access.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE dataall versionsCVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Verify NVIDIA kernel driver is installedCheck for nvlddmkm.sys in C:\Windows\System32\drivers\ or use PowerShell: Get-ChildItem -Path C:\Windows\System32\drivers\ -Filter nvlddmkm.sysAffected if The file exists - the NVIDIA GPU driver kernel component is present
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Identify the installed driver versionRight-click nvlddmkm.sys > Properties > Details to view File Version, or use PowerShell: (Get-Item 'C:\Windows\System32\drivers\nvlddmkm.sys').VersionInfoAffected if A version is returned - this confirms the specific driver version in use
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Compare version to affected rangesReview the version number returned against the affected version range for this CVE (all versions prior to NVIDIA security update)Affected if The installed version predates the patched version released for CVE-2017-0308 - the system is vulnerable
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Confirm the DxgkDdiEscape handler is activeThe vulnerability is in the DxgkDdiEscape handler within nvlddmkm.sys - this handler is invoked during display driver operations; presence of the driver with an unpatched version means the handler is exploitableAffected if The unpatched driver is loaded and running - the vulnerable code path is accessible
If the NVIDIA GPU driver (nvlddmkm.sys) is installed and the version predates the CVE-2017-0308 security patch, the system is affected by this kernel-mode buffer overflow vulnerability.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataApply the NVIDIA security update that patches the DxgkDdiEscape handler to properly validate untrusted input before using it in buffer size calculations. Organizations should prioritize patching given the high CVSS score and local privilege escalation potential.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation16.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-0308 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2017-0308 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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