CVE-2025-20083

Privilege escalation via unauthenticated boot containers

Published May 13, 2025 · Updated Feb 26, 2026

Improper authentication in Intel Slim Bootloader firmware allows local users with high privileges to escalate through unauthenticated containers. ContainerLib accepted containers or components marked AUTH_TYPE_NONE while verified boot was enabled, causing boot content without authorization data to be trusted. Exploitation requires existing high local privileges and high complexity; successful abuse crosses the verified-boot trust boundary.

CVSS severity7.5
High
EPSS probability0.16%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Improper authentication in Intel Slim Bootloader firmware allows local users with high privileges to escalate through unauthenticated containers. ContainerLib accepted containers or components marked AUTH_TYPE_NONE while verified boot was enabled, causing boot content without authorization data to be trusted. Exploitation requires existing high local privileges and high complexity; successful abuse crosses the verified-boot trust boundary.

The record

CVE
CVE-2025-20083
Published
May 13, 2025
Updated
Feb 26, 2026
Vendor
Topcon Positioning Systems, Inc.
Product
Intel Slim Bootloader
Classifications
CWE-287, T1542.001
Attack vector
local
Privileges
admin

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. May 13, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Feb 26, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

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  1. Affected versionversion=See references

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesadmin

What is affected?

Topcon Positioning Systems, Inc. · Intel Slim Bootloaderversion=See references

Published CVSS scores

7.1Intel CorporationCVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:H/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
7.5Intel CorporationCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H

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.

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No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesadmin
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-287Improper Authentication
T1542.001Pre-OS Boot: System Firmware

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

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Your stack

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