dbcve.org
Precision 7865 Tower FirmwareOperating system · Dell

CVE-2023-43088

MEDIUM · 6.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-12-22
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 1.5.0 or later.
See remediation →
73/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges 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
Dell Client BIOS contains a pre-boot direct memory access (DMA) vulnerability. An authenticated attacker with physical access to the system may potentially exploit this vulnerability in order to execute arbitrary code on the device.

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

Dell Client BIOS contains a pre-boot direct memory access (DMA) vulnerability where an authenticated attacker with physical access can exploit DMA-capable ports (Thunderbolt, USB-C, PCIe) in the pre-boot environment to execute arbitrary code before the operating system loads, bypassing OS-level security controls.

MitigationApply Dell BIOS/firmware updates addressing this vulnerability; additionally, disable Thunderbolt/USB-C DMA ports in BIOS settings and enforce physical security controls to limit unauthorized access to vulnerable ports.

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
Precision 7865 Tower FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< 1.5.0

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
Physical
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/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 installed BIOS firmware version
    Run 'dmidecode -s bios-version' on Linux or check via Dell Command | Configure: 'dwbios --getversion'. Alternatively, access BIOS setup (F2 at boot) and navigate to Main or Information to view BIOS version.
    Affected if The displayed version is lower than 1.5.0 (e.g., 1.4.0, 1.3.5, etc.)
  2. Verify product model is Dell Precision 7865 Tower
    Run 'dmidecode -s system-product-name' or check the system information screen in BIOS setup.
    Affected if The product is a Dell Precision 7865 Tower with BIOS version below 1.5.0
  3. Check Thunderbolt port enable status in BIOS
    Access BIOS setup (F2 at boot), navigate to 'Thunderbolt' or 'Security' settings, and verify whether Thunderbolt or USB-C ports are enabled for pre-boot access.
    Affected if Thunderbolt or USB-C ports are enabled in BIOS settings on an affected firmware version
  4. Check PCIe DMA configuration in BIOS
    In BIOS setup, review 'PCIe' or 'Security' settings for options like 'Enable/Disable PCIe Pre-Boot' or DMA-related configurations that allow devices to access memory before OS loads.
    Affected if PCIe pre-boot DMA is not explicitly disabled in BIOS on an affected version

You are affected if you own a Dell Precision 7865 Tower with BIOS firmware version below 1.5.0 and have Thunderbolt, USB-C, or PCIe DMA ports physically accessible and enabled in the pre-boot environment.

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 1.5.0 or later
Fixed in 1.5.0
Interim mitigation

Apply Dell BIOS/firmware updates addressing this vulnerability; additionally, disable Thunderbolt/USB-C DMA ports in BIOS settings and enforce physical security controls to limit unauthorized access to vulnerable ports.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Precision 7865 Tower BIOS Firmware version 1.5.0 or later

  1. Identify the current BIOS firmware version on the Precision 7865 Tower system
  2. Download the BIOS firmware version 1.5.0 or later from the official Dell support website (www.dell.com)
  3. Verify the downloaded firmware matches your system model and version
  4. Follow Dell's standard BIOS update procedure: either run the executable (.exe) firmware file from Windows, or use the .hdr/BIOS update file with Dell's BIOS update utility
  5. Restart the system and allow the firmware update to complete - do not interrupt the process
  6. After update completes, verify the new BIOS version is 1.5.0 or higher

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

Fix this in Precision 7865 Tower Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
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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-2023-43088 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