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Improper Input ValidationWeakness · CWE-20

CVE-2025-20105

HIGH · 8.7 CVSS v4.0 Published 2026-03-10
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
89/100
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
Improper input validation in some UEFI firmware SMM module for the Intel(R) reference platforms may allow an escalation of privilege. System software adversary with a privileged user combined with a low complexity attack may enable local code execution. This result may potentially occur via local access when attack requirements are present without special internal knowledge and requires no user interaction. The potential vulnerability may impact the confidentiality (high), integrity (high) and availability (high) of the vulnerable system, resulting in subsequent system confidentiality (high), integrity (high) and availability (high) impacts.

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

This is an improper input validation vulnerability in a UEFI firmware SMM (System Management Mode) module on Intel reference platforms. SMM is a highly privileged CPU mode that operates below the OS, making this a critical firmware flaw. A local attacker with privileged user access can exploit the input validation failure to execute code in SMM, achieving privilege escalation to the highest possible level on the system.

MitigationApply the Intel firmware update (BIOS/UEFI update) for affected platforms once released. This requires updating the system firmware from the vendor, as there's no software-only workaround for SMM vulnerabilities.

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
Low
Privileges
High
Authentication
X
User interaction
None
Scope
X

CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:H/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X

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 the system firmware vendor
    Check the system's UEFI/BIOS information during boot or via tools like 'dmidecode', 'uefi-info', or the vendor's hardware diagnostics. Determine if the firmware is from Intel or an OEM using Intel reference platform firmware.
    Affected if The system uses Intel reference platform firmware or an OEM system derived from Intel reference designs.
  2. Check installed UEFI firmware version
    Retrieve the current firmware version from the UEFI/BIOS setup menu, or use commands like 'dmidecode -s bios-version', 'fwupdtool get-devices', or vendor-specific tools. Record the exact version string.
    Affected if The installed firmware version matches an affected Intel reference platform release that has not been patched.
  3. Verify SMM is enabled
    Check SMM configuration in UEFI/BIOS settings (often under 'Advanced' or 'Security' menus), or use tools like 'intel-smm-swap' or 'chipsec' to query SMM configuration. Confirm SMM is present and operational.
    Affected if SMM is enabled and present on the system (this is the default state for most Intel platforms).
  4. Check for SMM integrity violations
    Use system integrity measurement tools such as TPM event logs, 'tpm2_pcrread', or Intel's SMM configuration integrity checking tools. Look for unexpected SMM entries or code that may indicate exploitation.
    Affected if Unauthorized or unexpected SMM code entries are detected in TPM measurements or SMM integrity logs.

If the system uses Intel reference platform UEFI firmware and the installed version is among the affected releases that have not been patched, the environment is vulnerable to SMM privilege escalation via this input validation flaw.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the Intel firmware update (BIOS/UEFI update) for affected platforms once released. This requires updating the system firmware from the vendor, as there's no software-only workaround for SMM vulnerabilities.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,480
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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-2025-20105 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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