CVE-2021-33166
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 · uneditedIncorrect default permissions for the Intel(R) RXT for Chromebook application, all versions, may allow an authenticated user to potentially enable information disclosure 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 confidenceThe Intel RXT for Chromebook application has incorrect default file system permissions that allow authenticated local users to access sensitive information that should be restricted. This is a local privilege escalation issue where low-privileged users can read files they should not have access to.
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 dataall 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
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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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Locate Intel Retail Experience Tool installationSearch for RXT-related directories or executables using commands like 'find / -iname "*rxt*" -o -iname "*intel*retail*" 2>/dev/null' or check common installation paths such as /opt, /usr/local, or Program Files.Affected if The application is found installed on the system.
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Identify application directories and filesList all files and directories associated with the Intel RXT installation, noting their ownership and current permission settings using 'ls -laR' on the discovered paths.Affected if RXT directories and files exist on the system.
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Check file permissions on sensitive directoriesExamine permissions on the main RXT application directory and subdirectories. Look for permissions that allow world or group read access (e.g., modes containing 'r--r--r--', 'rwxr-xr-x', or any mode with third or fourth digit less than 7 for group/others).Affected if Directories have permissions that grant read or execute access to 'others' or 'group' (e.g., 755, 775, 777, or similar).
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Verify sensitive file accessibilityAs a low-privileged test user (or using 'su' to impersonate one), attempt to read configuration files, credentials, or data files within the RXT installation directory using commands like 'cat', 'head', or 'ls'.Affected if An unprivileged user can successfully read files that should contain restricted data such as configuration files, credentials, or sensitive application data.
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Check for world-readable configuration or credential filesSpecifically look for common sensitive file types (config files, password files, keys, certificates, databases) within the RXT installation and verify their permissions include 'o+r' (world-readable) or 'g+r' (group-readable).Affected if Configuration files, credential stores, or other sensitive files are readable by non-owner users.
The environment is affected if the Intel Retail Experience Tool is installed and any of its directories or sensitive files have overly permissive access controls that allow authenticated local users with limited privileges to read content they should not access.
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 dataApply proper file system permissions (chmod/chown) to the Intel RXT application directories and files, restricting access to authorized users only and removing world/group read permissions where inappropriate.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-33166 — 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-2021-33166 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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