CVE-2020-12965
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 · uneditedWhen combined with specific software sequences, AMD CPUs may transiently execute non-canonical loads and store using only the lower 48 address bits potentially resulting in data leakage.
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 is a transient execution side-channel vulnerability in AMD CPUs where the processor may speculatively execute non-canonical memory loads and stores using only the lower 48 address bits. When combined with specific software sequences, this can potentially leak data through timing side channels, similar to Spectre/Meltdown class vulnerabilities.
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 versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall 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
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
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 the CPU modelOn Linux: cat /proc/cpuinfo | grep 'model name' or lscpu | grep 'Model name'. On Windows: wmic cpu get name or System Information. On macOS: sysctl -n machdep.cpu.brand_stringAffected if The CPU model matches any of these: Ryzen Pro 5650g, Ryzen Pro 5650ge, Ryzen Pro 5750g, Ryzen Pro 5750ge, Ryzen Pro 5350g, Ryzen Pro 5350ge, Ryzen Pro 4750g, or Ryzen Pro 4750ge
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Check the system BIOS/UEFI versionOn Linux: dmidecode -s bios-version or cat /sys/class/dmi/id/bios_version. On Windows: wmic bios get SMBIOSBIOSVersion. On macOS: system_profiler SPMemoryDataType (limited). Consult motherboard vendor documentation for version numberingAffected if Unable to verify the BIOS has been updated to include the AMD microcode fix for CVE-2020-12965 - contact the motherboard or OEM vendor for patched BIOS availability
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Check the installed CPU microcode versionOn Linux: cat /proc/cpuinfo | grep microcode or dmesg | grep microcode. Some distributions expose microcode revision via this interfaceAffected if The microcode version shown is earlier than the version containing the CVE-2020-12965 fix -AMD releases microcode updates through BIOS updates rather than standalone OS-level patches
If your system uses any of the listed AMD Ryzen Pro 4000G/5000G series processors and the BIOS/microcode has not been updated to include the vendor patch, the transient execution vulnerability is present.
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 AMD microcode/BIOS updates provided by motherboard vendors and implement any recommended software workarounds; test thoroughly as transient execution mitigations may introduce performance regressions.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $8,448.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-12965 — 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-2020-12965 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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- 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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