Improper Access ControlWeakness · CWE-284

CVE-2022-37410

HIGH · 7.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-05-16
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
72/100
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
Improper access control for some Intel(R) Thunderbolt driver software before version 89 may allow an authenticated 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 confidence

Intel Thunderbolt driver software before version 89 contains an improper access control vulnerability that allows an authenticated local user to escalate privileges. The vulnerability requires local access and authentication, but could allow a locally authenticated attacker to gain elevated system privileges.

MitigationUpdate Intel Thunderbolt driver software to version 89 or later. Ensure proper access controls and least-privilege principles are maintained for systems with Thunderbolt connectivity.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

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
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/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. Verify Intel Thunderbolt software is installed
    Check installed programs via Windows Settings > Apps & features or Control Panel > Programs and Features. Look for entries containing 'Intel Thunderbolt' or 'Thunderbolt' from Intel.
    Affected if No Intel Thunderbolt software is found in the installed programs list, then this CVE does not apply.
  2. Determine the installed Thunderbolt driver version
    Open Device Manager, expand 'System devices' or 'Universal Serial Bus controllers', look for Intel Thunderbolt entries. Right-click and select Properties > Driver tab to view the driver version.
    Affected if The driver version displayed is below 89 (for example, 88.x, 87.x, etc.).
  3. Check Intel Thunderbolt software UI version
    If Intel Thunderbolt software/applet is installed, open it (often from system tray or Start menu), navigate to About or Help section to view the software version number.
    Affected if The reported version is less than 89.
  4. Inspect Thunderbolt driver file version via PowerShell
    Run 'Get-ChildItem -Path C:\Windows\System32\Drivers -Filter "*thunderbolt*" -Recurse | Select-Object FullName, VersionInfo' to find Thunderbolt-related driver files and their versions.
    Affected if Any thunderbolt.sys or related driver file shows a version lower than 89.
  5. Check Intel Thunderbolt registry entries
    Open Registry Editor and navigate to 'HKLM\SOFTWARE\Intel\Thunderbolt' or 'HKLM\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Intel\Thunderbolt' to find version information if present.
    Affected if Registry version value is present and indicates a version below 89.

If Intel Thunderbolt driver software is installed and the installed version is below 89, the system is affected by this privilege escalation 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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update Intel Thunderbolt driver software to version 89 or later. Ensure proper access controls and least-privilege principles are maintained for systems with Thunderbolt connectivity.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,120
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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-2022-37410 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
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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