CVE-2022-31220
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 · uneditedDell BIOS versions contain an Unchecked Return Value vulnerability. A local authenticated administrator user could potentially exploit this vulnerability in order to change the state of the system or cause unexpected failures.
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 confidenceDell BIOS contains an Unchecked Return Value vulnerability where a local authenticated administrator user can exploit insufficient return value checking to alter system state or cause unexpected failures. This is a logic flaw in BIOS code that fails to properly handle error conditions from certain function calls.
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< 1.1.66< 1.2.0< 1.2.0< 1.1.66< 1.1.0< 1.4.1< 1.4.1< 1.3.0CVSS 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
- None
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/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 your Dell system modelRun 'systeminfo' or check the system label/sticker to confirm the exact model name (e.g., Chengming 3900, Inspiron 14 Plus 7420, Inspiron 3910, etc.)Affected if The model is not one of the eight listed affected models (Chengming 3900, Inspiron 14 Plus 7420, Inspiron 16 Plus 7620, Inspiron 3910, Inspiron 5320, Inspiron 5420, Inspiron 5620, Inspiron 7420)
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Check the installed BIOS versionRun 'wmic bios get smbiosbiosversion' or use Dell SupportAssist, Dell Command Update, or access the BIOS setup (F2 during boot) to view the firmware versionAffected if Cannot retrieve a BIOS version number or the version shows as unknown
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Compare your installed BIOS version to the vulnerable threshold for your model: Chengming 3900 < 1.1.66, Inspiron 14 Plus 7420 < 1.2.0, Inspiron 16 Plus 7620 < 1.2.0, Inspiron 3910 < 1.1.66, Inspiron 5320 < 1.1.0, Inspiron 5420 < 1.4.1, Inspiron 5620 < 1.4.1, Inspiron 7420 < 1.3.0Affected if Your installed BIOS version is LOWER than the version threshold listed for your specific model (e.g., 1.1.50 on an Inspiron 3910 is below the 1.1.66 threshold)
You are affected if your system is one of the eight listed Dell models AND your installed BIOS version falls below the specific version threshold for that model.
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 · scoped1.1.01.1.661.2.0
Apply the vendor-supplied BIOS update from Dell for affected versions. Organizations should use Dell Command Update, SCCM, or similar deployment tools to push the BIOS patch across affected systems following standard change management procedures.
BIOS firmware version 1.1.66, 1.2.0, 1.1.0, 1.4.1, or 1.3.0 (depending on model)
- Identify your specific Dell model from the affected list (Chengming 3900, Inspiron 14 Plus 7420, Inspiron 16 Plus 7620, Inspiron 3910, Inspiron 5320, Inspiron 5420, Inspiron 5620, or Inspiron 7420)
- Navigate to Dell's support website (www.dell.com) and enter your Service Tag or search for your product model
- Locate the BIOS updates section for your specific model
- Download the BIOS update version that matches or exceeds the fixed version for your model: Chengming 3900 and Inspiron 3910 require 1.1.66; Inspiron 14 Plus 7420 and Inspiron 16 Plus 7620 require 1.2.0; Inspiron 5320 requires 1.1.0; Inspiron 5420 and Inspiron 5620 require 1.4.1; Inspiron 7420 requires 1.3.0
- Run the BIOS update executable and follow the on-screen instructions - the system will typically restart to complete the flash process
- Verify the BIOS version has been updated by checking in BIOS setup (F2 on boot) or via Dell Support Assistant
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 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-2022-31220 — 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-2022-31220 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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