CVE-2020-8753
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 DHCP subsystem for Intel(R) AMT, Intel(R) ISM 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 information disclosure via network 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 confidenceAn out-of-bounds read vulnerability exists in the DHCP subsystem of Intel AMT (Active Management Technology) and Intel ISM. An unauthenticated remote attacker can exploit this to read sensitive information from memory beyond intended buffer boundaries by sending specially crafted DHCP packets to the affected system.
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, < 14.0.45< 11.8.80>= 11.12.0, < 11.12.80>= 11.22.0, < 11.22.80>= 12.0, < 12.0.70>= 14.0, < 14.0.45CVSS 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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Verify Intel AMT or ISM is presentCheck system BIOS/UEFI settings for Intel AMT/ISM enablement, or use Intel Manageability Commander tool to scan the network for AMT devicesAffected if Intel AMT or ISM is enabled on the system
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Determine AMT/ISM firmware versionAccess the AMT web interface (typically at https://<management-port>:16992) and navigate to the firmware version information, or use the 'amttool' command: amttool <hostname> infoAffected if The firmware version falls within any of these vulnerable ranges: < 11.8.80, >= 11.12.0 and < 11.12.80, >= 11.22.0 and < 11.22.80, >= 12.0 and < 12.0.70, or >= 14.0 and < 14.0.45
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Confirm DHCP is configuredCheck the AMT/ISM network configuration to determine if DHCP is enabled for the management interface. This can be done via the AMT web interface under Network Settings, or via the command: amttool <hostname> get DHCPAffected if DHCP is enabled on the AMT/ISM management interface (the vulnerability is triggered through specially crafted DHCP packets)
A system is affected if it has Intel AMT or ISM enabled with a vulnerable firmware version AND has DHCP configured for the management interface, as the out-of-bounds read is triggered via crafted DHCP packets.
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/ISM firmware to version 11.8.80, 11.12.80, 11.22.80, 12.0.70, or 14.0.45 or later. If updating is not immediately feasible, restrict network access to AMT management ports from untrusted networks.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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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 sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2020-8753 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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