Intel and AMD announced the discovery of new security flaws. While there are only four at AMD, compared with 34 at Intel, not all of them have yet been patched at AMD!
Security flaws discovered at AMD :
At AMD, the flaws in question concern processors using architectures from Zen 1 to Zen 4, including models from the Ryzen, Threadripper, Epyc and even Embedded series. They are also high-risk and concern the dual serial peripheral interface (SPI). All this can lead to denial-of-service attacks or other attacks enabling remote code execution.
In detail :
- CVE-2023-20576: insufficient AGESA authenticity verification data may allow unauthorized updating of SPI ROM data. This may result in privilege elevation or denial of service.
- CVE-2023-20577 : an overflow vulnerability in the SMM module allows the attacker to exploit a second vulnerability. This allows unauthorized write access to SPI flash memory, facilitating the execution of arbitrary code.
- CVE-2023-20579 : inadequate access control in the AMD SPI protection function allows exploitation by users with Ring0 privileged access, potentially compromising integrity and security.
- CVE-2023-20587 : inappropriate control access in System Management Mode (SMM) allows unauthorized access to SPI flash memory, facilitating arbitrary code execution.
At present, we have learned that AMD has not yet deployed a patch for all its products. APU 4000 series will benefit from a patch later this month. CPUs in the 3000 series will be patched in March with new bios, while embedded products will be patched in April!
Intel security vulnerabilities :
On the Intel side, we find a total of 34 vulnerabilities. These are mainly in software, while two are in firmware. Finally, we learn that they affect various components… These include chipset drivers, XTU applications, the One API toolkit and Thunderbolt technology.
Of course, most vulnerabilities can lead to elevation of privileges, denial-of-service attacks or access to sensitive data. However, most of them required direct or physical access to the hardware. This already mitigated the risks.
Finally, of these 34 vulnerabilities, only one has not been corrected by Intel. This affected the Usage Report system for the Gameplay tool… An application discontinued by Intel. It is for this reason that the flaw concerning it has not been corrected, and it is advisable to remove it.
Finally, we recommend that you update your drivers and the various Intel software programs installed on your machine.
