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Virtual GpuApplication · Nvidia

CVE-2023-31019

HIGH · 7.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-11-02
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 13.9 / 15.4 or later.
See remediation →
73/100
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
NVIDIA GPU Display Driver for Windows contains a vulnerability in wksServicePlugin.dll, where the driver implementation does not restrict or incorrectly restricts access from the named pipe server to a connecting client, which may lead to potential impersonation to the client's secure context.

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 · high confidence

NVIDIA GPU Display Driver for Windows contains a vulnerability in wksServicePlugin.dll where the named pipe server implementation fails to properly restrict access from connecting clients, potentially allowing an attacker to impersonate the client's security context and gain elevated privileges.

MitigationUpdate the NVIDIA GPU Display Driver to a version that addresses this vulnerability. Until patched, minimize attack surface by restricting access to affected systems and applying the principle of least privilege.

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
Virtual GpuApplication
Affected:< 13.9>= 14.0, < 15.4>= 16.0, < 16.2

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
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 if NVIDIA Virtual GPU software is installed
    Check for NVIDIA vGPU components in system - look for NVIDIA GRID vGPU software, GPU virtualization software, or check Programs and Features for NVIDIA virtual GPU related packages. Also check services.msc for NVIDIA-related services.
    Affected if NVIDIA Virtual GPU software is found on the system
  2. Determine the installed NVIDIA Virtual GPU version
    Run 'nvidia-smi' if available, or check the NVIDIA Control Panel / GRID software for version information. Check the driver version in Windows Device Manager under Display adapters. Alternatively, check the installed software version in Programs and Features.
    Affected if The installed version falls within affected ranges: < 13.9; >= 14.0 and < 15.4; >= 16.0 and < 16.2
  3. Check if wksServicePlugin.dll exists
    Search for wksServicePlugin.dll in common NVIDIA installation directories, typically under C:\Program Files\NVIDIA Corporation\ or C:\Windows\System32\. Use: Get-ChildItem -Path "C:\Program Files\NVIDIA Corporation" -Recurse -Filter "wksServicePlugin.dll" -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    Affected if The file wksServicePlugin.dll is found on the system (indicates the vulnerable component is present)
  4. Check if related NVIDIA virtual GPU service is running
    Open services.msc and look for NVIDIA vGPU related services (such as NVIDIA vGPU Virtual Graphics, NVIDIA Grid License Service, or similar). Check if the service is installed and running.
    Affected if An NVIDIA vGPU-related service exists and is running, which would enable the vulnerable named pipe server

The system is affected if NVIDIA Virtual GPU software is installed with a version in the affected ranges AND the wksServicePlugin.dll component is present, as this combination enables the vulnerable named pipe server that can be exploited for privilege escalation.

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 13.9 / 15.4 / 16.2 or later
Fixed in 13.915.416.2
Interim mitigation

Update the NVIDIA GPU Display Driver to a version that addresses this vulnerability. Until patched, minimize attack surface by restricting access to affected systems and applying the principle of least privilege.

Recommended fix High confidence

NVIDIA Virtual GPU driver 16.2 or later (for 16.x line), 15.4 or later (for 14.x-15.x line), or 13.9 or later (for 13.x line)

  1. Identify the currently installed NVIDIA Virtual GPU driver version on the Windows system
  2. Navigate to the NVIDIA licensing portal or official NVIDIA driver download page
  3. Download the appropriate Virtual GPU driver package for your hypervisor and guest VM configuration
  4. Install the updated NVIDIA Virtual GPU display driver following the standard NVIDIA installation procedure
  5. Restart the virtual machine to ensure the new driver loads properly
  6. Verify the installed driver version matches the fixed release (16.2 or later for the 16.x line)
Caveat Driver updates may require guest OS VM restart; verify VM backup and compatibility with existing hypervisor version before upgrading

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

Fix this in Virtual Gpu Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,490
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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-2023-31019 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