CVE-2025-32446
📋 TL;DR
An untrusted pointer dereference vulnerability in Intel QuickAssist Technology software before version 2.6.0 allows authenticated local users to escalate privileges and manipulate data. This affects systems running vulnerable Intel QAT software where an attacker has local access with user-level credentials. The vulnerability has high integrity impact but no confidentiality or availability impact.
💻 Affected Systems
- Intel QuickAssist Technology (QAT) software
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Authenticated attacker gains elevated privileges, potentially compromising system integrity through data manipulation or unauthorized access to restricted resources.
Likely Case
Local authenticated user exploits the vulnerability to escalate privileges within the Ring 3 user application context, enabling unauthorized data modification.
If Mitigated
With proper access controls and patching, the vulnerability is contained, preventing privilege escalation and maintaining system integrity.
🎯 Exploit Status
Attack requires authenticated local access and is described as low complexity. No public exploit code is currently known.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 2.6.0 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://intel.com/content/www/us/en/security-center/advisory/intel-sa-01373.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Download Intel QAT software version 2.6.0 or later from Intel's website. 2. Stop QAT services. 3. Install the updated software package. 4. Restart the system to apply changes.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable Intel QAT if not needed
linuxTemporarily disable Intel QuickAssist Technology to mitigate the vulnerability until patching is possible.
sudo systemctl stop qat_service
sudo modprobe -r qat_driver
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict local access to systems with vulnerable QAT software to trusted users only.
- Implement strict privilege separation and monitor for unusual privilege escalation attempts.
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Intel QAT software version using 'qat_service --version' or examine installed packages for versions before 2.6.0.Check Version:
qat_service --versionVerify Fix Applied:
Verify the installed Intel QAT version is 2.6.0 or later and check that QAT services are running normally.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unexpected privilege escalation events
- Failed authentication attempts followed by successful privilege changes
- QAT service crashes or unusual behavior
Network Indicators:
- None - this is a local vulnerability
SIEM Query:
source="system_logs" AND (event_type="privilege_escalation" OR process_name="qat_service")