Quickassist TechnologyApplication · Intel
CVE-2020-12333
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 · uneditedInsufficiently protected credentials in the Intel(R) QAT for Linux before version 1.7.l.4.10.0 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 confidenceIntel QAT (QuickAssist Technology) for Linux before version 1.7.l.4.10.0 contains insufficiently protected credentials that could allow an authenticated local user to potentially escalate privileges. The vulnerability stems from improper handling or storage of authentication credentials within the QAT driver component.
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
Quickassist TechnologyApplication
< 1.7.l.4.10.0CVSS 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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Verify Intel QAT driver presenceRun 'lsmod | grep qat' or check for QAT device files in /dev (such as /dev/qat_*). Also check if the 'qat' service exists via 'systemctl list-units | grep -i qat' or 'service --status-all | grep -i qat'.Affected if QAT driver is loaded or QAT service is present on the system.
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Identify installed QAT versionCheck the QAT driver version by running 'modinfo qat_dh895xcc' (or other QAT kernel module name) to view the version field. Alternatively, check the installed package version via package manager: 'dpkg -l | grep -i qat' or 'rpm -qa | grep -i qat'.Affected if The displayed version is lower than 1.7.l.4.10.0.
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Locate QAT configuration and credential filesSearch for QAT configuration directories such as /etc/qat/, /etc/config/qat/, or similar paths. Look for files that may contain authentication credentials, configuration files with 'credential', 'auth', or 'password' in the name within QAT directories.Affected if QAT configuration files exist and contain stored credentials in plaintext or with weak protection.
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Inspect file permissions on sensitive QAT filesRun 'ls -la' on the QAT configuration directories and files found. Check if files containing credentials are readable by non-privileged users (permissions should not be world-readable or group-readable by unauthorized groups).Affected if Credential files are readable by users other than root or the QAT service account.
The environment is affected if Intel QAT for Linux is installed with a version prior to 1.7.l.4.10.0, particularly if QAT credential or configuration files exist with overly permissive access rights.
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 data1.7.l.4.10.0
Upgrade Intel QAT for Linux to version 1.7.l.4.10.0 or later to obtain the patch that properly protects credentials.
Fix this in Quickassist Technology
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation3.0 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 $3,408.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-12333 — 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-2020-12333 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
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