CVE-2021-33157
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 · uneditedInsufficient control flow management in some Intel(R) Ethernet Adapters and Intel(R) Ethernet Controller I225 Manageability firmware 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 confidenceInsufficient control flow management in Intel Ethernet Adapters and I225 Controller manageability firmware allows a privileged local user to potentially escalate privileges. The vulnerability stems from improper handling of control flow within the firmware's manageability features, likely enabling an authenticated attacker to execute arbitrary code or gain elevated access beyond their current privileges.
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< 1.87< 1.87< 1.87< 29.0.1CVSS 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
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:N/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 I225 Ethernet hardwareUse system inventory commands (such as 'lspci' on Linux or device manager on Windows) to list network adapters and check for Intel Ethernet Controller I225 variants (IT, LM, or V models)Affected if The system has an Intel Ethernet Controller I225 (IT, LM, or V) present
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Check I225 firmware versionAccess the network adapter firmware/version information through the system BIOS, BMC/IPMI interface, or manufacturer-provided firmware update utilities. Compare the installed firmware version to 1.87Affected if The installed firmware version is below 1.87 (for example, 1.86, 1.80, etc.)
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Check Intel Ethernet Adapter driver versionUse the operating system's driver information utility (such as 'ethtool -i' on Linux, 'driverquery' on Windows, or check device manager properties) to retrieve the Intel Ethernet adapter driver versionAffected if The installed driver version is below 29.0.1
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Verify manageability interface statusCheck if Intel Manageability features (Intel AMT, ISM, or similar manageability subsystems) are enabled on the affected adapter. This can typically be found in BIOS settings, BMC configuration, or by querying the manageability engine via manufacturer toolsAffected if Manageability features are active on the system (the vulnerability affects the manageability firmware component)
A user is affected if their system contains an Intel Ethernet Controller I225 (IT/LM/V) with firmware below version 1.87 or driver below 29.0.1, with manageability features enabled.
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 · scoped1.8729.0.1
Apply Intel-provided firmware updates for affected Ethernet adapters and I225 manageability firmware. Restrict physical and local access to systems with vulnerable network adapter manageability interfaces.
Intel Ethernet Controller I225 firmware version 1.87 or later; Intel Ethernet Adapter Complete Driver version 29.0.1 or later
- Identify the current firmware version of the Intel Ethernet Controller I225 by checking the device firmware information in the system BIOS or management interface
- Identify the current Ethernet Adapter driver version through Device Manager or system utilities
- Download the latest Intel Ethernet Controller I225 firmware update from the Intel support website (search for I225 firmware)
- Apply the firmware update following Intel's documented firmware update procedure for the I225 controller
- Download and install Intel Ethernet Adapter Complete Driver version 29.0.1 or later from Intel's support website
- Restart the system if required after driver installation
- Verify that the firmware has been updated to version 1.87 or later and driver to 29.0.1 or later
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-33157 — 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-2021-33157 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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