dbcve.org
Thunderbolt Dch DriverApplication · Intel

CVE-2023-25769

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-02-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 88 or later.
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
Uncontrolled resource consumption in some Intel(R) Thunderbolt(TM) DCH drivers for Windows before version 88 may allow an authenticated user to potentially enable denial of service 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 an uncontrolled resource consumption vulnerability in Intel Thunderbolt DCH drivers for Windows versions prior to 88. An authenticated local user can exploit this to cause denial of service by exhausting system resources (likely memory, file handles, or similar) through the driver.

MitigationUpdate Intel Thunderbolt DCH drivers for Windows to version 88 or later to remediate this vulnerability.

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
Thunderbolt Dch DriverApplication
Affected:< 88

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
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 DCH driver is present
    Open Device Manager, expand 'System devices' or 'Universal Serial Bus controllers', and look for Intel Thunderbolt entries such as 'Intel(R) Thunderbolt(TM) Controller' or similar Intel Thunderbolt device entries. Alternatively, run 'Get-PnpDevice -Class USB' or 'Get-PnpDevice -Class System' in PowerShell to list Thunderbolt-related devices.
    Affected if The device or driver is present on the system
  2. Retrieve the installed driver version
    In Device Manager, right-click the Intel Thunderbolt device, select 'Properties', go to the 'Driver' tab, and note the 'Driver Version' field. Alternatively, use PowerShell: 'Get-PnpDeviceProperty -InstanceId <device-instance-id> -Key DEVPKEY_Device_DriverVersion' or check the driver file properties in System32\drivers folder if the driver filename is known.
    Affected if A version number is returned that is lower than 88.x.x.x or 88
  3. Compare against affected version range
    Compare the retrieved driver version to version 88. Intel driver versions follow a major.minor.build format (e.g., 87.5.164.35). Any version where the major version is less than 88 indicates the driver is vulnerable.
    Affected if The driver version shows a number below 88 (for example, 87.x.x.x or 86.x.x.x)
  4. Confirm the driver service is loaded
    Check if the Thunderbolt driver service is active by running 'Get-Service | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -like "*Thunderbolt*"}' in PowerShell or via Services.msc. The vulnerability is exploitable when the driver is loaded and running.
    Affected if The Thunderbolt driver service is installed and running on the system

If the installed Intel Thunderbolt DCH driver version is anything below 88, the system is affected by 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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 88 or later
Fixed in 88
Interim mitigation

Update Intel Thunderbolt DCH drivers for Windows to version 88 or later to remediate this vulnerability.

Recommended fix High confidence

Intel Thunderbolt DCH Driver version 88 or later for Windows

  1. Identify the current version of Intel Thunderbolt DCH Driver installed on the system via Device Manager or Intel Driver & Support Assistant
  2. Navigate to Intel's official support website and download Intel Thunderbolt DCH Driver version 88 or later for Windows
  3. Run the downloaded installer and follow the on-screen prompts to update the driver
  4. Restart the system if prompted by the installer
  5. Verify the installed driver version is 88 or higher in Device Manager

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

Fix this in Thunderbolt Dch Driver Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,920
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,072.

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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-2023-25769 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
  • 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