CVE-2020-0598
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 · uneditedUncontrolled search path in the installer for the Intel(R) Binary Configuration Tool for Windows, all versions, may allow an authenticated user to potentially enable 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 · high confidenceThe Intel Binary Configuration Tool installer for Windows has an uncontrolled search path vulnerability (DLL hijacking). An authenticated local user can place malicious DLLs or executables in a directory the installer searches before the legitimate location, causing the installer to load and execute the attacker's code with elevated privileges during installation.
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
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/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.
-
Check if Intel Binary Configuration Tool is installedOpen Control Panel > Programs and Features, or run 'appwiz.cpl', and look for 'Intel Binary Configuration Tool' in the list of installed programs. Alternatively, search the Windows Registry under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall for any entry containing 'Intel' and 'Binary Configuration Tool' in the DisplayName value.Affected if An entry for Intel Binary Configuration Tool appears in installed programs or the registry.
-
Search for the installer executable on the systemUse File Explorer or the command line to search for installer files matching patterns like 'IntelBinaryConfigurationTool*.exe', 'IBCT*.exe', or '*BinaryConfigurationTool*.exe'. Check locations such as C:\Users\*\Downloads, C:\Temp, and any software repository folders.Affected if An Intel Binary Configuration Tool installer executable is found on the system.
-
Verify the installed versionIf the application is installed, locate its main executable (typically in C:\Program Files\Intel\Binary Configuration Tool\ or similar path), right-click, select Properties, and check the File Version or Product Version field. Compare this version against official Intel release notes.Affected if Any version of Intel Binary Configuration Tool is found installed, since all versions are affected.
The system is affected if Intel Binary Configuration Tool or its installer is present, because all versions contain the DLL hijacking vulnerability in the installer.
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 dataReplace the affected Intel Binary Configuration Tool with a patched version from official Intel sources, or uninstall if unnecessary. Verify installer integrity before execution and avoid running installers from untrusted locations.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,456.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-0598 — 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-2020-0598 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
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