Overview
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) system has recently identified a significant vulnerability, CVE-2025-33045, within the APTIOV BIOS system. This vulnerability permits a privileged user to exploit two critical flaws, namely the “Write-what-where Condition” and “Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor.” These flaws can be used to write arbitrary data and to disclose sensitive information, leading to potential system compromise or data leakage.
This vulnerability is of particular concern to organizations that rely on APTIOV BIOS systems, as it could potentially allow malicious actors to compromise the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of their systems. It is therefore crucial that all APTIOV users understand the implications of this vulnerability and take appropriate action to mitigate its impact.
Vulnerability Summary
CVE ID: CVE-2025-33045
Severity: High (8.2 CVSS Score)
Attack Vector: Local
Privileges Required: Privileged User
User Interaction: No
Impact: Potential system compromise or data leakage
Affected Products
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Product | Affected Versions
APTIOV BIOS | All current versions
How the Exploit Works
The exploit takes advantage of the vulnerabilities in APTIOV’s BIOS, specifically the “Write-what-where Condition” and the “Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor.” A privileged user could use these vulnerabilities to write arbitrary data or expose sensitive information. The “Write-what-where Condition” allows an attacker to take control over the system by writing specific data to a specific location. The “Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor” could allow an attacker to access and disclose sensitive information, thus breaching confidentiality.
Conceptual Example Code
A conceptual example of how the vulnerability might be exploited could involve a shell command that manipulates the BIOS settings. Note that this is a hypothetical example for illustrative purposes only.
# Assume root privilege
sudo su
# Access BIOS settings
cd /sys/firmware/efi/efivars
# Write arbitrary data to a specific location
echo -n -e '\x07\x00\x00\x00\x01' > /sys/firmware/efi/efivars/TestVariable-8be4df61-93ca-11d2-aa0d-00e098032b8c
# Read sensitive information
cat /sys/firmware/efi/efivars/TestVariable-8be4df61-93ca-11d2-aa0d-00e098032b8cThis code first assumes root privilege, accesses the BIOS settings, writes arbitrary data to a specific location, and then reads sensitive information, mimicking the actions of a potential attacker exploiting the described vulnerabilities.
Mitigation
To mitigate the impacts of this vulnerability, it is recommended that users apply the vendor patch as soon as it becomes available. Until then, using a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) may serve as a temporary mitigation measure. Regularly updating and patching the BIOS system can also help prevent future vulnerabilities.
