CVE-2020-8670 in Intel
Summary
by MITRE • 06/10/2021
Race condition in the firmware for some Intel(R) Processors may allow a privileged user to potentially enable escalation of privilege via local access.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/12/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2020-8670 represents a critical race condition flaw within the firmware of certain Intel processors, specifically affecting the processor's ability to maintain consistent security states during concurrent operations. This vulnerability resides at the hardware level within the processor's firmware implementation, creating a window of opportunity where malicious actors can exploit temporal inconsistencies in privilege management mechanisms. The race condition occurs when multiple threads or processes attempt to access and modify privileged system resources simultaneously, leading to unpredictable behavior that can be manipulated by an attacker with local access privileges.
The technical nature of this flaw stems from improper synchronization mechanisms within the processor's microcode, where the timing of certain privileged operations does not adequately account for concurrent access patterns. This condition allows a malicious user with local system access to potentially manipulate the processor's privilege levels through carefully timed execution sequences that exploit the temporal gap between privilege checks and actual privilege enforcement. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-362, which specifically addresses Race Conditions, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068, which covers local privilege escalation through system-level vulnerabilities. The processor's firmware fails to maintain atomic operations during privilege transitions, creating a scenario where an attacker can interleave their malicious code execution with legitimate privilege management sequences.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation as it can enable attackers to gain unauthorized access to sensitive system resources, manipulate kernel-level operations, and potentially establish persistent backdoors within the affected systems. Systems running vulnerable Intel processors become susceptible to attacks where local users can exploit this condition to elevate their privileges to system administrator levels, undermining the fundamental security model of operating systems. The attack vector requires local access to the system, making it particularly concerning for environments where multiple users share the same physical hardware or where untrusted local accounts exist. Organizations with virtualized environments may also be at risk, as the vulnerability can potentially be exploited across virtual machine boundaries if proper isolation mechanisms are not in place.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2020-8670 primarily focus on firmware updates provided by Intel, which address the underlying race condition through improved synchronization mechanisms and enhanced privilege management protocols. System administrators should prioritize applying the latest firmware patches from Intel, alongside operating system updates that may include additional mitigations for the vulnerability. The implementation of runtime protection mechanisms such as kernel address space layout randomization and control flow integrity can provide additional defense layers against exploitation attempts. Organizations should also implement strict access controls and monitor for unusual privilege escalation activities, particularly in environments where local user access is not strictly controlled. The vulnerability's classification as a firmware-level issue means that traditional software-based mitigations may be insufficient, requiring hardware-level fixes that address the root cause of the race condition within the processor's microcode implementation.