CVE-2025-20023
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 · uneditedIncorrect default permissions for some Intel(R) Graphics Driver software installers 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 confidenceIntel Graphics Driver software installers ship with overly permissive default file system permissions, allowing a local authenticated user to modify installer files or related components. This permission misconfiguration can be exploited to achieve privilege escalation from a standard user account to higher system privileges.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
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
- High
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/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.
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Locate Intel Graphics Driver installationSearch for Intel Graphics Driver files in common installation directories such as C:\Program Files\Intel\ or C:\Program Files (x86)\Intel\, and check for installer files (e.g., setup.exe, *.msi) in download or temp folders used for driver updates.Affected if Intel Graphics Driver software or its installer files exist on the system
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Check file permissions on driver directoryRight-click the Intel Graphics Driver directory, select Properties, then Security tab. Examine the permissions for Users or Standard users group. Verify if they have Write or Modify permissions.Affected if Standard user accounts are granted Write or Modify access to Intel Graphics Driver files or directories
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Inspect installer file ACLsOpen Command Prompt and run: icacls "C:\Program Files\Intel\*" (or the specific path found). Look for entries showing (F) or (M) permissions for Users or Authenticated Users.Affected if ACL output shows Full (F) or Modify (M) permissions granted to Users or Authenticated Users on installer or driver files
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Verify file ownershipCheck the owner of Intel Graphics Driver files via Properties > Security > Advanced > Owner tab, or run: icacls "path" | findstr /i "owner"Affected if Files are owned by a standard user account rather than TrustedInstaller, SYSTEM, or Administrators
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Test write access as standard userIf possible, attempt to create or modify a test file in the Intel Graphics Driver directory using a standard (non-admin) account to confirm actual exploitation capability.Affected if A standard user can successfully write or modify files in the Intel Graphics Driver installation directory
If Intel Graphics Driver installer files or directories grant Write/Modify permissions to standard users, the system is vulnerable to privilege escalation via CVE-2025-20023.
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.
From vendor dataApply vendor-supplied patches or updated Intel Graphics Driver installers that enforce correct restrictive permissions. Verify that installer files are owned by TrustedInstaller or SYSTEM with appropriate ACLs restricting modification to standard users.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-20023 — 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-2025-20023 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
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- 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