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Insydeh2oApplication · Insyde

CVE-2021-43522

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-02-03
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.14.34 / 5.24.34 or later.
See remediation →
77/100
Remediation priority · High
Zero-click

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 · unedited
An issue was discovered in Insyde InsydeH2O with kernel 5.1 through 2021-11-08, 5.2 through 2021-11-08, and 5.3 through 2021-11-08. A StorageSecurityCommandDxe SMM memory corruption vulnerability allows an attacker to write fixed or predictable data to SMRAM. Exploiting this issue could lead to escalating privileges to SMM.

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 confidence

A memory corruption vulnerability in the StorageSecurityCommandDxe UEFI driver allows an attacker to write fixed or predictable data to SMRAM (System Management RAM). By exploiting this SMM (System Management Mode) memory corruption, an attacker can escalate privileges to the highest privilege level on the system, achieving persistent firmware-level code execution.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied InsydeH2O firmware updates that address this vulnerability. Prioritize systems running kernel versions 5.1, 5.2, or 5.3 through the November 2021 threshold.

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
Insydeh2oApplication
Affected:>= 5.1, < 5.14.34>= 5.2, < 5.24.34>= 5.3, < 5.33.34

CVSS 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
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify UEFI firmware vendor and version
    Run 'dmidecode -s bios-version' or check system information via 'msinfo32' on Windows, or access UEFI/BIOS setup screen on boot. Identify if the firmware is InsydeH2O-based.
    Affected if The system uses InsydeH2O UEFI firmware and the version falls within the affected ranges: 5.1 to 5.14.33, 5.2 to 5.24.33, or 5.3 to 5.33.33.
  2. Determine InsydeH2O kernel version
    If the firmware is InsydeH2O, check the kernel/core version string typically displayed in UEFI setup under 'BIOS Information' or 'Version' fields, or use manufacturer-specific tools like 'insydeflash' or platform-specific UEFI info tools.
    Affected if The displayed kernel version matches one of the affected ranges: 5.1.x, 5.2.x, or 5.3.x through versions prior to the 5.14.34, 5.24.34, or 5.33.34 thresholds respectively.
  3. Verify StorageSecurityCommandDxe driver presence
    Inspect the UEFI firmware image or use tools like 'uefi-firmware-parser', 'chipsec', or the manufacturer's firmware update utility to list loaded drivers in the DXE phase. Look for 'StorageSecurityCommandDxe' driver.
    Affected if The StorageSecurityCommandDxe driver is present in the firmware image.
  4. Check SMRAM configuration status
    Use 'chipsec_main -m smrr' or read SMM configuration via 'dmidecode -t processor' or UEFI variable checks (if accessible) to verify SMRAM is defined and accessible.
    Affected if SMRAM is present and the system supports SMM, as the vulnerability requires writing to SMRAM through the affected driver.

A system is affected if it runs InsydeH2O UEFI firmware version 5.1.x through 5.14.33, 5.2.x through 5.24.33, or 5.3.x through 5.33.33, with the StorageSecurityCommandDxe driver loaded and SMRAM available for exploitation.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 5.14.34 / 5.24.34 / 5.33.34 or later
Fixed in 5.14.345.24.345.33.34
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor-supplied InsydeH2O firmware updates that address this vulnerability. Prioritize systems running kernel versions 5.1, 5.2, or 5.3 through the November 2021 threshold.

Recommended fix High confidence

InsydeH2O 5.14.34 (for 5.1.x), 5.24.34 (for 5.2.x), or 5.33.34 (for 5.3.x)

  1. 1. Identify the current InsydeH2O firmware version by checking the UEFI/BIOS setup screen or using system information tools.
  2. 2. Navigate to the official Insyde support website (www.insyde.com) and locate the firmware downloads section.
  3. 3. Download the fixed InsydeH2O firmware version corresponding to your product line: 5.14.34 or later for 5.1.x, 5.24.34 or later for 5.2.x, or 5.33.34 or later for 5.3.x.
  4. 4. Follow the vendor's standard firmware update procedure, which typically involves running the firmware update utility from within the operating system or using the UEFI flash utility.
  5. 5. After updating, verify the new firmware version matches the intended fixed release.
Caveat UEFI firmware updates carry a risk of system corruption if interrupted; ensure stable power and follow vendor instructions exactly

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Insydeh2o Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation24.0 h
  • Testing16.0 h
  • Review / QA8.0 h
56.0 hours of engineering $9,760
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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 sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-43522 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data