dbcve.org
Debian LinuxOperating system · Debian

CVE-2022-21151

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-05-12
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
57/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
Processor optimization removal or modification of security-critical code for some Intel(R) Processors 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 confidence

This is a processor vulnerability affecting certain Intel processors where optimization removal or modification of security-critical code may allow an authenticated local user to potentially disclose information. It appears to be a side-channel or speculative execution related issue requiring local access to the system.

MitigationApply Intel processor microcode updates and relevant firmware/BIOS updates from Intel and system OEMs. Monitor Intel security advisories for specific affected processor models and remediation guidance.

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
Debian LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 10.0= 11.0
Celeron N6210 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Celeron N4500 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Celeron N4505 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Celeron N5100 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Celeron N5105 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Celeron N6211 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Celeron N4020 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions

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
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 checks

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

  1. Identify your processor model
    Run 'grep -m1 "model name" /proc/cpuinfo' or 'dmidecode -s processor-version' to see the CPU installed
    Affected if The processor model is one of: Intel Celeron N6210, N4500, N4505, N5100, N5105, N6211, or N4020
  2. Check the system firmware version
    Run 'dmidecode -s bios-version' or check your system's BIOS/UEFI firmware version information through the firmware setup utility
    Affected if The firmware version is older than the latest version available from Intel or your system OEM for your specific processor model
  3. Verify microcode version
    Run 'dmesg | grep -i microcode' to check loaded microcode version, or 'cat /proc/cpuinfo' and look for 'microcode' field
    Affected if The microcode version is older than the latest Intel-issued microcode update for your processor
  4. Check operating system version
    Run 'lsb_release -a' or 'cat /etc/os-release' to identify the OS version
    Affected if Running Debian Linux version 10.0 or 11.0 on affected Intel Celeron hardware
  5. Confirm local user access exists
    Verify you have an authenticated local user account on the system with command-line access
    Affected if The system permits local user login and the attacker would have local access to execute code

You are affected if your system uses any of the listed Intel Celeron processor models (N6210, N4500, N4505, N5100, N5105, N6211, N4020) and has not received Intel microcode/firmware updates to address this vulnerability.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply Intel processor microcode updates and relevant firmware/BIOS updates from Intel and system OEMs. Monitor Intel security advisories for specific affected processor models and remediation guidance.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Debian 10 (buster) and 11 (bullseye) receive microcode updates through the intel-microcode package in their respective repositories

  1. For Debian systems: Run 'apt update && apt install intel-microcode' to install the updated CPU microcode package
  2. After installing the microcode package, reboot the system to load the updated microcode: 'systemctl reboot'
  3. For Intel Celeron N-series processors: Check with your device manufacturer (OEM) for BIOS/firmware updates that include the Intel microcode fix
  4. If using Intel NUC or similar Intel-branded systems, check support.intel.com for available BIOS/firmware updates
  5. Verify the microcode is loaded after reboot by checking 'dmesg | grep microcode' or 'cat /proc/cpuinfo | grep microcode'
Caveat Microcode updates are generally safe but may require a system reboot; some very old systems may have compatibility concerns with newer microcode versions

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

Fix this in Debian Linux Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
24.0 hours of engineering $4,240
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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2022-21151 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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
  • 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data