CVE-2018-12204
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 · uneditedImproper memory initialization in Platform Sample/Silicon Reference firmware Intel(R) Server Board, Intel(R) Server System and Intel(R) Compute Module may allow privileged user to potentially enable an escalation of privilege 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 · moderate confidenceThis vulnerability involves improper memory initialization in Intel server firmware (Platform Sample/Silicon Reference firmware for Intel Server Boards, Systems, and Compute Modules). The memory initialization flaw could allow a privileged local user to escalate their privileges on the affected system.
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 versionsall 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
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/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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Identify Intel server hardware in useCheck system manufacturer and model using commands like 'dmidecode -s system-manufacturer' or 'dmidecode -s system-product-name', or check the BMC web interface for system informationAffected if The system is an Intel server board, system, or compute module (e.g., Intel Server Board, Intel Server System, Intel Compute Module)
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Determine firmware typeCheck if the system runs Intel Platform Sample Firmware or Intel Silicon Reference Firmware by reviewing the BIOS/UEFI setup screen, BMC firmware details, or using 'dmidecode -s bios-version' to identify the firmware build stringAffected if The firmware is identified as Intel Platform Sample Firmware or Intel Silicon Reference Firmware (these are reference firmware implementations)
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Check firmware version and dateRetrieve the current firmware version via 'dmidecode -s bios-version' or through the BMC web interface under Firmware/BIOS information. Record the full version string and build date.Affected if The installed firmware version is from the Intel Platform Sample or Silicon Reference firmware lines (all versions are affected per the advisory)
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Verify firmware patch statusCompare the installed firmware version and date against Intel's security advisory (Intel SA-00118) for the specific server product. Check Intel's download center for the latest patched firmware version for your specific model.Affected if The installed firmware version predates the patched version released for your specific Intel server product, or no patch has been applied
A user is affected if they are running Intel Platform Sample Firmware or Intel Silicon Reference Firmware on Intel server hardware without the vendor-supplied firmware update applied.
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 Intel firmware update for affected server products. This is a firmware-level patch requiring careful deployment planning, potential system downtime, and verification of successful installation.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,728.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-12204 — 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-2018-12204 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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A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data