Privilege escalation via SMM handler tampering
Published Mar 23, 2023 · Updated Feb 25, 2025
Insufficient control-flow management in AMD Ryzen 2000–5000 Series and Threadripper processors allows privileged attackers to escalate privileges. AmdCpmGpioInitSmm inadequately controls execution flow, enabling tampering with its System Management Mode handler; AMD has not disclosed the missing check or triggering input. Exploitation requires existing privileged access and can elevate execution into the firmware-isolated SMM context.
Summary
What happened
Insufficient control-flow management in AMD Ryzen 2000–5000 Series and Threadripper processors allows privileged attackers to escalate privileges. AmdCpmGpioInitSmm inadequately controls execution flow, enabling tampering with its System Management Mode handler; AMD has not disclosed the missing check or triggering input. Exploitation requires existing privileged access and can elevate execution into the firmware-isolated SMM context.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2023-20559
- Published
- Mar 23, 2023
- Updated
- Feb 25, 2025
- Vendor
- AMD
- Product
- 2nd Gen AMD Ryzen Threadripper Processors
- Classifications
- CWE-691, T1068
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Mar 23, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Feb 25, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.
Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=Various
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
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.
Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.
Technologies
Your stack
See the directory against your own environment.
Your stack
Check the software in your environment
Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.
Book a demo