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NVD / CVE Program· CNA intel

CVE-2026-20901: Improper input validation for some Intel(R) Xeon(R) processors within firmware may allow an escalation of privilege.

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 16/100)

  • The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.09% (FIRST EPSS).
  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it. Administrator privileges are required. No user action is required. Special conditions such as timing or configuration are required.
  • Fixed version: ucode-intel (openSUSE:Leap 16.0) 20260812-160000.1.1; ucode-intel (SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3) 20260812-150200.68.1; microcode_ctl (SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP4 LTSS EXTREME CORE) 1.17-102.83.98.1.
  • Mentioned 1 time in Turkish national cyber security advisories (siberguvenlik.gov.tr).

Low priority for now. Upgrade to ucode-intel (openSUSE:Leap 16.0) 20260812-160000.1.1; ucode-intel (SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3) 20260812-150200.68.1; microcode_ctl (SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP4 LTSS EXTREME CORE) 1.17-102.83.98.1 or later.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS

Improper input validation for some Intel(R) Xeon(R) processors within firmware may allow an escalation of privilege. Startup code and smm adversary with a privileged user combined with a high complexity attack may enable data alteration. This result may potentially occur via local access when attack requirements are present without special internal knowledge and requires no user interaction. The potential vulnerability may impact the confidentiality (none), integrity (none) and availability (none) of the vulnerable system, resulting in subsequent system confidentiality (none), integrity (high) and availability (none) impacts.

MediumCVSS 4.0 · v4.0—No exploit Fix available
Published
Aug 11, 2026
Updated
Aug 28, 2026
EPSS
0.0% · 0th percentile

Report tools

JSON

Action score

16

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
16 / 40 · 4.0 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
0 / 30 · 0.0%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
none
Automatable
no
Technical impact
total

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

CNA vs NVD score

NVD
—
CNA · intel
4.0
NVD has not scored this yet; the score shown is the CNA’s.

CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:H/AT:P/PR:H/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:H/SA:N

The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.

Get told when this record changes

  • Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
  • No public exploit code on record
  • A fix has been released

If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.

Follow CVE-2026-20901

When you'll hear from us

  • when it enters CISA KEV
  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
  • when the record is updated (including a fixed version)
  • when EPSS rises 20 points in a week

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Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.

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Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

VendorProduct
intelxeon bronze 3408u firmware
intelxeon bronze 3408u
intelxeon gold 5403n firmware
intelxeon gold 5403n
intelxeon gold 5411n firmware
intelxeon gold 5411n
intelxeon gold 5412u firmware
intelxeon gold 5412u
intelxeon gold 5415\+ firmware
intelxeon gold 5415\+
intelxeon platinum 8592\+ firmware
intelxeon platinum 8592\+

and 176 more

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • intel xeon bronze 3408uall versions
  • intel xeon bronze 3408u firmwareall versions
  • intel xeon bronze 3508u firmwareall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5403n firmwareall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5411nall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5411n firmwareall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5412uall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5412u firmwareall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5415all versions
  • intel xeon gold 5415 firmwareall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5415+ firmwareall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5416sall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5416s firmwareall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5418nall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5418n firmwareall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5418yall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5418y firmwareall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5420all versions
  • intel xeon gold 5420 firmwareall versions
  • intel xeon gold 5420+ firmwareall versions

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (intel). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • n/a Intel(R) Xeon(R) processors

    • See referencesaffected

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

EcosystemPackageAffected rangeFix
Debian:12intel-microcodefrom 0—
openSUSE:Leap 16.0ucode-intelbefore 20260812-160000.1.120260812-160000.1.1
SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3ucode-intelbefore 20260812-150200.68.120260812-150200.68.1
SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP4 LTSS EXTREME COREmicrocode_ctlbefore 1.17-102.83.98.11.17-102.83.98.1
SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP5-LTSSucode-intelbefore 20260812-164.120260812-164.1
SUSE:Linux Micro 6.0ucode-intelbefore 20260812-1.120260812-1.1
SUSE:Linux Micro 6.1ucode-intelbefore 20260812-slfo.1.1_1.120260812-slfo.1.1_1.1
SUSE:Linux Micro 6.2ucode-intelbefore 20260812-160000.1.120260812-160000.1.1

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

Product / packageFixed versionSource
opensuse:ucode-intel20260812-160000.1.1 · openSUSE:Leap 16.0Package registry (OSV)
suse:microcode_ctl1.17-102.83.98.1 · SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP4 LTSS EXTREME COREPackage registry (OSV)
suse:ucode-intel20260812-1.1 · SUSE:Linux Micro 6.0Package registry (OSV)

Exploit status

No known public exploit

No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

No dated events beyond publication.

EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

The product’s vendor appears in a public program. Matched by name; verify the scope text in the program.

National notice (Türkiye Cybersecurity Directorate / USOM)

Official security notices citing this record; remediation advice is on the agency's page.

All national notices →

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it.
  • Administrator privileges are required.
  • No user action is required.
  • Special conditions such as timing or configuration are required.

If successful

Confidentiality
Integrity
Availability
Attack vector
Local
Attack complexity
High
Privileges required
High
User interaction
None
Scope
X

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-20 · Improper Input Validation

CVSS vector

CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:H/AT:P/PR:H/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:H/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X

nvd-secondary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

Change log

  1. Fix✗ → ✓

For records you follow, these changes also arrive as notifications. →

References

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records