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Unison SoftwareApplication · Intel

CVE-2023-38570

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-11-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 20.14.2.3053 / 20.14.4244 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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
Access of memory location after end of buffer for some Intel Unison software 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

A buffer access vulnerability in Intel Unison software allows an authenticated local attacker to read memory beyond buffer boundaries, potentially achieving privilege escalation. The flaw stems from improper bounds checking when accessing memory locations.

MitigationApply the Intel-provided security update for Unison software to patch the buffer access vulnerability. Verify no unauthorized local accounts exist and follow least-privilege principles for local user access.

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
Unison SoftwareApplication
Affected:< 20.14.5683.0< 20.14.4244< 20.14.2.3053

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
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/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. Check if Intel Unison is installed
    On Windows: Open Programs and Features or check C:\Program Files\Intel\Unison. On macOS: Check /Applications for Intel Unison.app. On Linux: Check /usr/bin/unison or /opt/intel/unison.
    Affected if Intel Unison software is not present on the system, the vulnerability does not apply.
  2. Determine installed Intel Unison version
    On Windows: Right-click the Unison application in Programs and Features, select Properties, and view the Version field. Alternatively, run 'wmic product get name,version' and filter for Intel Unison. On macOS: Right-click Intel Unison.app, select Get Info, and check the Version field.
    Affected if The installed version is lower than 20.14.5683.0, 20.14.4244, or 20.14.2.3053 (any version below these thresholds is affected).
  3. Verify the Unison service or process is running
    On Windows: Open Task Manager or run 'Get-Service | Where-Object {$_.Name -like "*Unison*"}' in PowerShell. On macOS/Linux: Run 'ps aux | grep -i unison' in terminal.
    Affected if If Intel Unison is installed but not running, the immediate attack surface is reduced, though the vulnerable binary still exists on the system.
  4. Review local user accounts with Unison access
    Check which local users have permissions to run or access Intel Unison. On Windows: Use 'icacls' on the Unison installation directory or check Local Users and Groups (lusrmgr.msc). On Linux: Check file permissions with 'ls -la' on the Unison binary directory.
    Affected if If untrusted or unauthorized local user accounts exist on the system, they could potentially exploit this vulnerability to read memory beyond buffer boundaries.

A system is affected if Intel Unison software is installed with a version lower than 20.14.5683.0 (or 20.14.4244 or 20.14.2.3053), especially when untrusted local users have access to run the software.

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 20.14.2.3053 / 20.14.4244 / 20.14.5683.0 or later
Fixed in 20.14.2.305320.14.424420.14.5683.0
Interim mitigation

Apply the Intel-provided security update for Unison software to patch the buffer access vulnerability. Verify no unauthorized local accounts exist and follow least-privilege principles for local user access.

Recommended fix High confidence

Intel Unison version 20.14.5683.0 or later (or 20.14.4244 or later, or 20.14.2.3053 or later depending on your release track)

  1. Navigate to the official Intel support or download page for Intel Unison software
  2. Locate the Intel Unison software download section
  3. Download version 20.14.5683.0 or later
  4. Ensure you have administrative privileges on the target system
  5. Close any running instances of Intel Unison
  6. Install the updated version following the standard installation process
  7. Restart the system if prompted or if the service does not restart automatically
  8. Verify the installed version matches or exceeds 20.14.5683.0
Caveat Standard security patch upgrade with no expected breaking changes; verify compatibility with your system requirements

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

Fix this in Unison Software Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,770
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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-2023-38570 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