CVE-2017-5696
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 · uneditedUntrusted search path in Intel Graphics Driver 15.40.x.x, 15.45.x.x, and 21.20.x.x allows unprivileged user to elevate privileges via local access.
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 confidenceIntel Graphics Driver versions 15.40.x.x, 15.45.x.x, and 21.20.x.x contain an untrusted search path vulnerability where the driver searches for executables or libraries in insecure locations. A local unprivileged attacker can place a malicious file in a directory that gets searched before the legitimate location, causing it to be loaded with elevated privileges when the driver runs.
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 data< 21.20.16.4860= 15.40.1.64.4256= 15.40.4.64.4256= 15.40.7.64.4279= 15.40.14.4352= 15.40.26.4474= 15.40.34.4624= 15.40.36.4703= 15.40.37.4835= 15.45.18.4664= 15.45.19.4678= 15.45.21.4821CVSS 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
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/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 Intel Graphics Driver is installedCheck system information, Device Manager, or Intel diagnostic utilities to confirm the Intel Graphics Driver is present on the systemAffected if The driver is installed and running - the vulnerability applies when the driver loads and performs its executable/library search operations
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Identify installed Intel Graphics Driver versionUse system information tools, Device Manager properties, or Intel's driver detection utilities to obtain the exact driver version numberAffected if The version matches one of the affected ranges: < 21.20.16.4860 OR exactly equals 15.40.1.64.4256, 15.40.4.64.4256, 15.40.7.64.4279, 15.40.14.4352, 15.40.26.4474, 15.40.34.4624, 15.40.36.4703, 15.40.37.4835, 15.45.18.4664, 15.45.19.4678, or 15.45.21.4821
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Confirm driver is actively loaded or scheduled to runCheck running processes for igfx* executables or verify the driver is loaded as a Windows kernel module/serviceAffected if The Intel Graphics Driver is actively running or scheduled to execute - exploitation requires the driver's search path behavior to be triggered
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Assess user environment for untrusted directories in PATHReview system PATH environment variable and common locations where the driver searches (temporary folders, user-writable directories) for suspicious executable or library files placed by other usersAffected if Directories writable by unprivileged users exist in locations the driver searches before the legitimate driver installation path
A system is affected if it runs any Intel Graphics Driver version that matches the specific affected version list or is older than 21.20.16.4860, with the driver actively loaded and potential for untrusted directories to be searched before secure locations.
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 data21.20.16.4860
Apply the vendor-provided patch or updated Intel Graphics Driver from Intel's official support channels. Ensure the driver uses fully qualified paths for all executable and library lookups.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-5696 — 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-2017-5696 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
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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