CVE-2026-35159
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 · uneditedDell Client Platform BIOS contains an Authentication Bypass by Primary Weakness vulnerability. An unauthenticated attacker with physical access could potentially exploit this vulnerability, leading to Information Disclosure.
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 confidenceDell Client Platform BIOS contains an authentication bypass vulnerability in its firmware. An unauthenticated attacker with physical access can bypass BIOS authentication controls, potentially leading to disclosure of sensitive system information or configuration data.
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
- Physical
- Complexity
- High
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- Low
CVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:L
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.
-
Identify if the system is a Dell client platformCheck the system manufacturer and model. On Windows, run 'wmic computersystem get manufacturer,model' or check the system information BIOS screen during boot. On Linux, run 'sudo dmidecode -s system-manufacturer' and 'sudo dmidecode -s system-product-name'.Affected if The system is made by Dell and is a client platform (laptop, desktop, or workstation)
-
Determine the installed BIOS versionOn Windows, run 'wmic bios get smbiosbiosversion' or check in BIOS setup under 'About' or 'BIOS Information'. On Linux, run 'sudo dmidecode -s bios-version' or check /sys/class/dmi/id/bios_version. Note the full version string exactly as displayed.Affected if A Dell BIOS version is installed that matches the vulnerable versions listed in Dell's security advisory for CVE-2026-35159
-
Verify if BIOS password or authentication controls are configuredEnter BIOS setup (press F2 or Del during boot) and check under 'Security' or 'Passwords' settings. Look for whether a Supervisor/Admin password, User password, or System password is set. On Windows, Dell Command | Configure can also report this status.Affected if BIOS password protection is enabled (the vulnerability allows bypassing these controls)
-
Check if BIOS authentication bypass is the configured protection methodReview the security controls relying on BIOS passwords. Determine if the system depends on BIOS authentication as a primary security boundary for protecting sensitive system information or configuration data.Affected if The organization relies on BIOS passwords to control access to system configuration or sensitive data
The environment is affected if it is a Dell client platform with a BIOS version that falls within the vulnerable range specified in Dell's advisory for CVE-2026-35159, and BIOS authentication controls are in use as a security measure.
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 Dell BIOS/firmware updates when available, and implement physical security controls to restrict unauthorized access to endpoints.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,744.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-35159 — 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-2026-35159 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
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.
- 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