CVE-2020-12303
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 · uneditedUse after free in DAL subsystem for Intel(R) CSME versions before 11.8.80, 11.12.80, 11.22.80, 12.0.70, 13.0.40, 13.30.10, 14.0.45 and 14.5.25, Intel(R) TXE 3.1.80, 4.0.30 may allow an authenticated user to potentially enable escalation of 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 confidenceUse-after-free vulnerability in Intel CSME/TXE DAL (Device Abstraction Layer) firmware. Memory is accessed after being freed, allowing a locally authenticated attacker to potentially escalate privileges.
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< 11.8.80>= 11.12.0, < 11.12.80>= 11.22.0, < 11.22.80>= 12.0, < 12.0.70>= 14.0, < 14.0.45>= 14.5.0, < 14.5.25= 3.1.80= 4.0.30CVSS 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
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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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Check Intel CSME firmware versionUse the Intel ME Info tool (meinfo.exe on Windows or meinfo on Linux) or run 'dmidecode' and look for 'Intel(R) Management Engine' or 'CSME' version entry in the outputAffected if The reported CSME version is less than 11.8.80, OR between 11.12.0 and 11.12.79, OR between 11.22.0 and 11.22.79, OR between 12.0.0 and 12.0.69, OR between 14.0.0 and 14.0.44, OR between 14.5.0 and 14.5.24
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Check Intel TXE firmware versionUse the Intel TXE Info tool (txeinfo) if available, or check via 'dmidecode' for 'Intel(R) Trusted Execution Engine' or 'TXE' version entry, or view the BIOS/UEFI information screenAffected if The reported TXE version is exactly 3.1.80 or 4.0.30 (these specific versions are affected)
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Confirm the DAL module is presentCheck if the Device Abstraction Layer (DAL) component is installed on the system; on Windows this may appear in Programs and Features as 'Intel DAL' or in Device Manager under System devices, or check via the Intel Management Engine interface in BIOSAffected if The DAL component is present on the system (required for the vulnerability to be exploitable)
A system is affected if it has an Intel CSME firmware version in one of the vulnerable ranges listed OR has Intel TXE version 3.1.80 or 4.0.30, and the DAL component is present on the device.
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 data11.8.8011.12.8011.22.80
Update Intel CSME firmware to version 11.8.80+, 11.12.80+, 11.22.80+, 12.0.70+, 13.0.40+, 13.30.10+, 14.0.45+, or 14.5.25+ and TXE to 3.1.80+ or 4.0.30+ via BIOS/firmware update.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-12303 — 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-2020-12303 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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