CVE-2020-5981
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability in NVIDIA Windows GPU Display Driver allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause denial of service through specially crafted DirectX11 shaders. It affects all versions of NVIDIA Windows GPU Display Driver. Users with NVIDIA GPUs on Windows systems are at risk.
💻 Affected Systems
- NVIDIA Windows GPU Display Driver
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Manual Verification Required
This CVE does not have specific version information in our database, so automatic vulnerability detection cannot determine if your system is affected.
Why? The CVE database entry doesn't specify which versions are vulnerable (no version ranges provided by the vendor/NVD).
🔒 Custom verification scripts are available for registered users. Sign up free to download automated test scripts.
- Review the CVE details at NVD
- Check vendor security advisories for your specific version
- Test if the vulnerability is exploitable in your environment
- Consider updating to the latest version as a precaution
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Full system compromise with remote code execution leading to complete control of the affected system.
Likely Case
Application crashes or system instability leading to denial of service for graphics-intensive applications.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper network segmentation and application sandboxing.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction with malicious content but could be delivered through various vectors including web content or applications.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: NVIDIA GPU Display Driver version 452.06 and later
Vendor Advisory: https://nvidia.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/5075
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Download latest NVIDIA driver from official website. 2. Run installer with administrative privileges. 3. Select 'Custom installation'. 4. Choose 'Perform clean installation'. 5. Complete installation and restart system.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable DirectX11 shader execution
windowsPrevent execution of potentially malicious shaders by disabling DirectX11 features
Not applicable - requires application/game settings configuration
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement application whitelisting to prevent execution of untrusted applications
- Use network segmentation to isolate systems with vulnerable drivers from critical assets
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check NVIDIA driver version in NVIDIA Control Panel or Device ManagerCheck Version:
nvidia-smi (if installed) or check in NVIDIA Control Panel > System InformationVerify Fix Applied:
Verify driver version is 452.06 or higher in NVIDIA Control Panel📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Application crashes related to nvwgf2um.dll
- Windows Event Logs showing graphics driver failures
Network Indicators:
- Unusual network traffic from graphics-intensive applications
SIEM Query:
EventID=1000 AND SourceName='Application Error' AND FaultingModuleName='nvwgf2um.dll'