CVE-2020-8749
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 · uneditedOut-of-bounds read in subsystem for Intel(R) AMT versions before 11.8.80, 11.12.80, 11.22.80, 12.0.70 and 14.0.45 may allow an unauthenticated user to potentially enable escalation of privilege via adjacent 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 confidenceThis is an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in Intel Active Management Technology (AMT), a hardware-level manageability subsystem found in Intel vPro-enabled systems. An unauthenticated attacker with adjacent network access (same local network segment) can potentially read sensitive memory contents, which could be leveraged for privilege escalation. The vulnerability affects AMT versions prior to 11.8.80, 11.12.80, 11.22.80, 12.0.70, and 14.0.45.
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, < 14.0.45all 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
- Adjacent
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/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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Confirm Intel AMT hardware presenceVerify the system is Intel vPro-enabled (check system BIOS/UEFI or system specifications for Intel AMT or Intel vPro technology)Affected if System does not have Intel AMT hardware - not affected. If AMT is present, continue to version check.
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Determine installed AMT firmware versionAccess AMT firmware version through BIOS/UEFI settings, Intel Management Engine BIOS Extension (MEBX), Intel Manageability Commander, or system management tools provided by the OEMAffected if Version is lower 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 and 12.0.69, OR between 14.0 and 14.0.44 - system is affected.
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Assess AMT network accessibilityVerify if Intel AMT network interface (typically ports 16992/16993 for HTTP/HTTPS) is accessible from the local network segment. Check firewall rules and network segmentation configurations.Affected if AMT is exposed to adjacent network attackers (same Layer 2 network) - exploitation becomes feasible.
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Check for NetApp Cloud Backup deploymentIdentify if NetApp Cloud Backup software is installed in the environment (review installed applications, backup infrastructure)Affected if NetApp Cloud Backup is in use - all versions are affected per CVE scope.
A system is affected if it runs Intel AMT firmware at a version below the fixed releases (11.8.80, 11.12.80, 11.22.80, 12.0.70, 14.0.45) or uses NetApp Cloud Backup of any version, and AMT network interfaces are reachable from adjacent network segments.
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 AMT firmware to one of the patched versions (11.8.80+, 11.12.80+, 11.22.80+, 12.0.70+, or 14.0.45+). Since AMT operates below the OS layer, remediation requires BIOS/firmware updates, typically deployed via Intel Manageability Commander or enterprise patch management tools.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-8749 — 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-2020-8749 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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