CVE-2025-54502

Ring 0-to-SMM escalation via LocateProtocol misuse

Published Apr 16, 2026 · Updated Apr 16, 2026

Privilege escalation in AMD processor Platform Initialization firmware allows local users with Ring 0 access to execute code in SMM. The APCB SMM driver's SMI handler incorrectly calls EFI_BOOT_SERVICES.LocateProtocol, exposing a boot service in the privileged SMM context. Exploitation requires existing Ring 0 privileges and high complexity; successful execution crosses into SMM and can compromise system confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

CVSS severity7.1
High
EPSS probability0.14%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Privilege escalation in AMD processor Platform Initialization firmware allows local users with Ring 0 access to execute code in SMM. The APCB SMM driver's SMI handler incorrectly calls EFI_BOOT_SERVICES.LocateProtocol, exposing a boot service in the privileged SMM context. Exploitation requires existing Ring 0 privileges and high complexity; successful execution crosses into SMM and can compromise system confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

The record

CVE
CVE-2025-54502
Published
Apr 16, 2026
Updated
Apr 16, 2026
Vendor
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.
Product
AMD Ryzen™ 7000 Series Desktop Processors
Classifications
CWE-668, T1068
Attack vector
local
Privileges
admin

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Apr 16, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Apr 16, 2026Record 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?

Affected versions are unavailable in this record. Check the vendor advisory for version and patch details.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesadmin

What is affected?

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 7000 Series Desktop ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Embedded V1000 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Threadripper™ PRO 9000 WX-Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD EPYC 4004 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Threadripper™ PRO 3000 WX-Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Z2 Series Processors GoAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen 7040 Series Mobile Processors with Radeon GraphicsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 3000 Series Mobile Processors with Radeon™ GraphicsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD EPYC Embedded 8004 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Embedded R2000 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen Z1 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Threadripper™ PRO 5000 WX-Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD EPYC Embedded 7003 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 7045 Series Mobile Processors with Radeon™ GraphicsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD EPYC Embedded 7002 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ AI 300 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ AI Max 300 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Athlon™ 3000 Series Mobile Processors with Radeon™ GraphicsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Embedded V3000 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Threadripper™ PRO 7000 WX-Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD EPYC Embedded 9004 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen Embedded V2000 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 7030 Series Mobile Processors with Radeon™ GraphicsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Embedded 5000 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 5000 Series Mobile Processors with Radeon™ GraphicsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 4000 Series Desktop ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen Embedded 8000 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 5000 Series Desktop Processors with Radeon™ GraphicsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD EPYC 9005 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen Embedded 7000 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD EPYC™ 8004 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 8000 Series Desktop ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD EPYC™ 9004 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Z2 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 7035 Series Processors with Radeon™ GraphicsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD EPYC 7002 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Threadripper™ 9000 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Embedded 9000 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Instinct MI300A Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 7020 Series Processors with Radeon™ GraphicsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Embedded R1000 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD EPYC 9V64H ProcessorAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 8040 Series Mobile Processors with Radeon™ GraphicsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 9000 Series Desktop ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 3000 Series Desktop ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen 6000 Series Mobile ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD EPYC Embedded 9005 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 5000 Series Desktop ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7000 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD EPYC™ 7003 Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 9000HX Series ProcessorsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ Z2 Series Processors ExtremeAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. · AMD Ryzen™ 4000 Series Mobile Processors with Radeon™ GraphicsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

7.1Advanced Micro DevicesCVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:H/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

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.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

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-668Exposure of Resource to Wrong Sphere
T1068Exploitation for Privilege Escalation

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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