CVE-2021-33059
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 · uneditedImproper input validation in the Intel(R) Administrative Tools for Intel(R) Network Adapters driver for Windows before version 1.4.0.15, 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 · high confidenceThis is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in the Intel Administrative Tools for Intel Network Adapters driver on Windows. The issue is improper input validation that allows a privileged user to elevate their privileges. The vulnerability exists in versions prior to 1.4.0.15 and requires local access to the 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< 1.4.0.15CVSS 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
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/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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Confirm Intel Administrative Tools installationCheck if Intel Administrative Tools for Intel Network Adapters is installed on the Windows system by reviewing installed programs in Programs and Features or using 'Get-WmiObject -Class Win32_Product' via PowerShellAffected if The software is not present on the system, the vulnerability does not apply
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Identify installed versionLocate the version information for the Intel Administrative Tools for Network Adapters driver. This can typically be found in the driver properties via Device Manager, or by checking the file version of the relevant driver files in the Intel installation directoryAffected if The version cannot be determined or the driver is not found, indicating the vulnerability may not be present
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Compare version against vulnerable rangeCompare the identified version to the affected range: versions prior to 1.4.0.15 are vulnerableAffected if The installed version is lower than 1.4.0.15, the system is running a vulnerable version
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Verify driver is activeCheck that the Intel Network Adapter driver is loaded and active on the system using 'Get-WmiObject Win32_PnPSignedDriver | Where-Object {$_.DeviceName -like "*Intel*"}' or reviewing Device ManagerAffected if The driver is loaded and running on a version below 1.4.0.15, the vulnerability is applicable to this environment
A system is affected if the Intel Administrative Tools for Intel Network Adapters driver is installed with a version lower than 1.4.0.15 and the driver is actively loaded on Windows.
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.
dbcve · scoped1.4.0.15
Update the Intel Administrative Tools for Network Adapters driver to version 1.4.0.15 or later to address the input validation flaw.
Intel Administrative Tools for Intel Network Adapters version 1.4.0.15 or later
- Identify the currently installed version of Intel Administrative Tools for Network Adapters on the Windows system
- Navigate to the official Intel support website or download portal to obtain the updated Administrative Tools
- Uninstall the current version of Intel Administrative Tools from the Windows system
- Download and install Intel Administrative Tools version 1.4.0.15 or later
- Verify the installed version matches the patched release
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-33059 — 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-2021-33059 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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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.
- 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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