CVE-2026-20898

Analyzed Analyzed - Analysis Complete

Improper Access Control in Intel Xeon Processor Firmware

Publication date: 2026-08-11

Last updated on: 2026-08-31

Assigner: Intel Corporation

Description

Improper access control in the firmware for some in Alias Checking Trusted Module for some Intel(R) Xeon(R) processors may allow an escalation of privilege. Startup code and SMM adversary with a privileged user combined with a high complexity attack may enable escalation of privilege. This result may potentially occur via local access when attack requirements are not present without special internal knowledge and requires no user interaction. The potential vulnerability may impact the confidentiality (high), integrity (high) and availability (none) of the vulnerable system, resulting in subsequent system confidentiality (high), integrity (high) and availability (none) impacts.

CVSS Scores

EPSS Scores

Probability:
Percentile:

Meta Information

Published

2026-08-11

Last Modified

2026-08-31

Generated

2026-09-01

AI Q&A

2026-08-12

EPSS Evaluated

2026-08-30

NVD

CVE-2026-20898

EUVD

EUVD-2026-56509

Affected Vendors & Products

Vendor	Product	Version / Range
intel	xeon_6315p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6325p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6333p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6337p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6349p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6353p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6357p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6369p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6377p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6503p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6503p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6505p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6507p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6511p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6513p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6515p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6516p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6517p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6518p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6520p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6521p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6523p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6527p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6530p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6532p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6533p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6543p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6544p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6546p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6548p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6553p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6556p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6563p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6706p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6710e_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6714p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6716p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6718p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6724p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6725p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6726p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6728p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6730p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6731e_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6731p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_silver_4410t_firmware	*
intel	xeon_silver_4410tm_firmware	*
intel	xeon_silver_4410y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_silver_4416_firmware	*
intel	xeon_silver_4416+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_silver_4509y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_silver_4510_firmware	*
intel	xeon_silver_4510t_firmware	*
intel	xeon_silver_4514y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_silver_4516y+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6732p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6736p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6737p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6738p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6740e_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6740p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6741p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6745p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6746e_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6747p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6748p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6756e_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6756p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6760p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6761p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6766e_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6766p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6767p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6768p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6768p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6774p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6776p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6776p-b_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6780e_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6781p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6787p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6788p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6944p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6952p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6960p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6962p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6972p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6978p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6979p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_6980p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_bronze_3408u_firmware	*
intel	xeon_bronze_3508u_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5403n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5411n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5412u_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5415_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5415+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5416s_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5418n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5418y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5420_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5420+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5423n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5433n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5512u_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5515+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_5520+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6403n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6414u_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6416h_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6418h_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6421n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6423n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6426y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6428n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6430_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6433n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6433ne_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6434_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6434h_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6438m_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6438n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6438y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6438y+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6442y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6443n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6444y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6448h_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6448y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6454s_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6458q_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6526y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6530_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6534_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6538n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6538y+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6542y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6544y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6548n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6548y+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6554s_firmware	*
intel	xeon_gold_6558q_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8444h_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8450h_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8452y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8454h_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8458p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8460h_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8460y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8460y+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8461v_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8462y_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8462y+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8468_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8468h_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8468v_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8470_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8470n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8470q_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8471n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8480_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8480+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8490h_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8558_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8558p_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8558u_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8562y+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8568y+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8570_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8571n_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8580_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8581v_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8592+_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8592v_firmware	*
intel	xeon_platinum_8593q_firmware	*

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE

KEV

CWE ID	Description
CWE-284	The product does not restrict or incorrectly restricts access to a resource from an unauthorized actor.

Attack-Flow Graph

Executive Summary

This vulnerability is an improper access control flaw in the firmware of some Intel Xeon processors' Alias Checking Trusted Module. It may allow an attacker with privileged user access and high complexity to escalate privileges via local access without special internal knowledge or user interaction.

Detection Guidance

Detection of this vulnerability requires checking the firmware version of Intel Xeon processors for the affected Alias Checking Trusted Module. Use system management tools like Intel's System Management Interface (SMI) or firmware update utilities to inspect the current firmware version. Compare the version against Intel's advisory for this CVE to determine if an update is needed.

Impact Analysis

An attacker could exploit this to gain higher privileges on the system, potentially leading to unauthorized access to sensitive data or system control. The confidentiality and integrity of the system may be compromised, but availability is not affected.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could lead to unauthorized access or modification of sensitive data, which may violate compliance requirements for GDPR and HIPAA. Organizations may face legal and regulatory penalties if such breaches occur due to this flaw.

Mitigation Strategies

Apply firmware updates from Intel as soon as they become available to address the improper access control in the Alias Checking Trusted Module for affected Xeon processors.

Hi! I’m here to help you understand CVE-2026-20898. Ask me anything about the vulnerability, its impact, or mitigation strategies.

0/70