CVE-2020-8704
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 · uneditedRace condition in a subsystem in the Intel(R) LMS versions before 2039.1.0.0 may allow a privileged 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 · moderate confidenceA race condition exists in the Intel(R) LMS (Local Management Service) subsystem that allows a privileged local user to potentially escalate their privileges. The vulnerability stems from improper synchronization in a subsystem handling privileged operations, where concurrent access patterns can be exploited to bypass authorization checks.
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< 2039.1.0.0all 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
- Local
- Complexity
- High
- Privileges
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/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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Identify Intel LMS installationCheck if Intel Local Manageability Service is installed. On Windows, look for 'Intel LMS' in Programs and Features or check the installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\Intel\Local Management Service). On Linux, check for packages named 'intel-lms' or 'lms' using package managers (dpkg -l, rpm -qa).Affected if Intel LMS is present with a version lower than 2039.1.0.0 or version cannot be determined
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Determine Intel LMS versionIf installed, determine the exact version. On Windows, right-click the service in Services panel and check properties, or run 'wmic product get name,version' if available. On Linux, run 'lms_version' or check the service binary version with 'lmsd --version' if available.Affected if Version is present and less than 2039.1.0.0
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Identify affected Siemens device modelCheck system information or firmware version on the Siemens device. For Simatic Field Pg, check the model identifier in system info or boot logs. For Simatic Ipc devices (427e, 477e, 477e Pro, 527g, 547g), check the device model via 'systeminfo' on Windows or check /proc/cpuinfo on Linux, or review device firmware version through the device's management interface.Affected if Device is one of: Simatic Field Pg M5, Simatic Field Pg M6, Simatic Ipc427e, Simatic Ipc477e, Simatic Ipc477e Pro, Simatic Ipc527g, or Simatic Ipc547g (all versions are affected)
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Verify Intel LMS service statusCheck if the Intel LMS service is running. On Windows, open Services and look for 'Intel(R) Local Management Service' or run 'sc query LMS'. On Linux, check with 'systemctl status lms' or 'service lms status'.Affected if The LMS service is running and the version is vulnerable (less than 2039.1.0.0)
A system is affected if Intel Local Manageability Service version is below 2039.1.0.0 and the service is running, or if the system is any of the listed Siemens devices with Intel LMS 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 data2039.1.0.0
Upgrade Intel LMS to version 2039.1.0.0 or later. Since this is a race condition in a privileged subsystem, ensure the update is applied to all affected systems and verify the fix through code review of the synchronization mechanisms.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation16.0 h
- Testing12.0 h
- Review / QA8.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-8704 — 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-2020-8704 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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