TPM bricking via empty Platform authorization
Published Jan 3, 2022 · Updated Nov 3, 2025
Security feature bypass in TianoCore EDK II firmware through stable 202105 allows attackers to cause TPM bricking or system service interruption via BIOS operations. The firmware leaves the TPM Platform authorization value empty, so platform-hierarchy commands can permanently brick the TPM or trigger a non-permanent denial of service. Exploitation requires a vulnerable firmware build on the affected PC model; the record does not establish a safe remote interface or a non-destructive way to reproduce the failure.
Summary
What happened
Security feature bypass in TianoCore EDK II firmware through stable 202105 allows attackers to cause TPM bricking or system service interruption via BIOS operations. The firmware leaves the TPM Platform authorization value empty, so platform-hierarchy commands can permanently brick the TPM or trigger a non-permanent denial of service. Exploitation requires a vulnerable firmware build on the affected PC model; the record does not establish a safe remote interface or a non-destructive way to reproduce the failure.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2021-38576
- Published
- Jan 3, 2022
- Updated
- Nov 3, 2025
- Vendor
- TianoCore
- Product
- EDK II
- Classifications
- T1490
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jan 3, 2022CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Nov 3, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=edk2-stable202105, edk2-stable202102, edk2-stable202011, edk2-stable202008, edk2-stable202005, edk2-stable202002, edk2-stable201911, edk2-stable201908, edk2-stable201905, edk2-stable201903, edk2-stable201811, edk2-stable201808
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
No public exploit references are available in this record.
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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