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Radeon SoftwareApplication · Amd

CVE-2020-12892

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-11-15
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 21.3.1 or later.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges

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 · unedited
An untrusted search path in AMD Radeon settings Installer may lead to a privilege escalation or unauthorized code execution.

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 confidence

The AMD Radeon Settings Installer contains an untrusted search path vulnerability (DLL hijacking) where it loads dynamic-link libraries from locations that can be controlled by a local attacker, potentially allowing privilege escalation or arbitrary code execution when the installer runs with elevated privileges.

MitigationIdentify and remove vulnerable AMD installer versions from systems; if the installer is required, ensure it runs only from trusted directories with restricted permissions and verify downloads through official AMD channels with cryptographic signature validation.

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
Radeon SoftwareApplication
Affected:< 21.3.1

CVSS 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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check if AMD Radeon Software is installed
    Look for AMD Radeon Software in the system. On Windows, check Program Files/Program Files (x86) for AMD folders, or use 'Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -like "*AMD*Radeon*"}' in PowerShell to query installed programs.
    Affected if AMD Radeon Software is found on the system
  2. Identify the installed AMD Radeon Software version
    Locate the Radeon Software installation directory (commonly C:\Program Files\AMD\CNext\CN or C:\Program Files (x86)\AMD\CNext\CN) and look for version information in the application properties or executable metadata.
    Affected if The installed version is less than 21.3.1 (e.g., 20.x.x, 19.x.x, etc.)
  3. Locate AMD installer executable files
    Search the system for installer files such as 'RadeonSoftware.exe', 'Radeon-Software-Installer.exe', or similar named executables in download folders, temp directories, or the AMD installation directory.
    Affected if Any AMD installer executable is found on the system
  4. Verify installer file permissions
    Examine the permissions on any found AMD installer files. Check if the folder containing the installer allows write access to non-admin users by right-clicking the folder, selecting Properties, and reviewing the Security tab.
    Affected if The installer is located in a directory with weak permissions allowing untrusted user write access

A system is affected if AMD Radeon Software version less than 21.3.1 is installed, or if AMD installer executables exist in directories with exploitable file permissions.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 21.3.1 or later
Fixed in 21.3.1
Interim mitigation

Identify and remove vulnerable AMD installer versions from systems; if the installer is required, ensure it runs only from trusted directories with restricted permissions and verify downloads through official AMD channels with cryptographic signature validation.

Recommended fix High confidence

21.3.1 or later

  1. Download AMD Radeon Software version 21.3.1 or later from the official AMD website (www.amd.com)
  2. Run the installer with appropriate privileges
  3. Follow the installation prompts to complete the update to the fixed version

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Radeon Software Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,130
Get the upgrade done

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

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2020-12892 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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