CVE-2023-28056
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 contains an improper input validation vulnerability. A local authenticated malicious user with administrator privileges may potentially exploit this vulnerability in order to modify a UEFI variable.
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 firmware contains an improper input validation vulnerability that allows a locally authenticated attacker with administrator privileges to modify UEFI variables. This could enable persistent firmware-level changes or bypass security mechanisms that rely on UEFI variable integrity.
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< 1.26.0< 1.22.0< 1.0.20< 1.1.20< 1.12.0< 1.1.0< 1.22.0< 1.23.0CVSS 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
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Identify the system modelRun 'systeminfo' or check the system properties to confirm the exact Dell Alienware model (e.g., Area 51m R1, Aurora R11, M15 R2, etc.)Affected if The system is not one of the affected Alienware models listed in the CVE (Area 51m R1/R2, Aurora R11/R12/R13/R15, M15 R2/R3)
-
Determine the current BIOS firmware versionRun 'wmic bios get smbiosbiosversion' from command prompt, or check the BIOS version via Dell SupportAssist, or boot into BIOS setup to view the versionAffected if Unable to retrieve BIOS version information
-
Compare BIOS version against affected thresholdMatch your system model to its corresponding vulnerable version threshold: Area 51m R1 < 1.26.0, Area 51m R2 < 1.22.0, Aurora R11 < 1.0.20, Aurora R12 < 1.1.20, Aurora R13 < 1.12.0, Aurora R15 < 1.1.0, M15 R2 < 1.22.0, M15 R3 < 1.23.0Affected if The installed BIOS version is lower than the threshold for your specific model
You are affected if you own one of the listed Alienware systems AND your current BIOS firmware version is below the version threshold for that model, and an attacker with local admin privileges could modify UEFI variables.
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 · scoped1.0.201.1.01.1.20
Apply the Dell BIOS firmware update provided by Dell for affected systems. Restrict physical and administrative access to systems pending patch deployment.
Update to BIOS/firmware version >=1.26.0 (Area 51m R1), >=1.22.0 (Area 51m R2), >=1.0.20 (Aurora R11), >=1.1.20 (Aurora R12), >=1.12.0 (Aurora R13), >=1.1.0 (Aurora R15), >=1.22.0 (M15 R2), or >=1.23.0 (M15 R3) depending on your specific model
- 1. Identify the exact Alienware model from the affected list (Area 51m R1/R2, Aurora R11/R12/R13/R15, M15 R2/R3)
- 2. Visit Dell's official support website at www.dell.com and navigate to the drivers and downloads section for your specific model
- 3. Locate the BIOS/UEFI firmware update for your system
- 4. Download the firmware version that meets or exceeds the fixed version for your model: Area 51m R1 requires >=1.26.0, Area 51m R2 >=1.22.0, Aurora R11 >=1.0.20, Aurora R12 >=1.1.20, Aurora R13 >=1.12.0, Aurora R15 >=1.1.0, M15 R2 >=1.22.0, M15 R3 >=1.23.0
- 5. Review the firmware update instructions provided by Dell on the download page
- 6. Run the Dell BIOS update utility as an administrator, or follow the specific update method recommended (some may require booting into Windows or using a USB bootable update)
- 7. Ensure the laptop/desktop remains powered on and connected to AC power throughout the firmware update process
- 8. Allow the system to reboot and complete the BIOS update; do not interrupt this process
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,880.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-28056 — 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-2023-28056 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
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.
- 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