Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This flaw affects Dell BIOSConnect, a recovery or update capability in Dell firmware. A local authenticated administrator could potentially trigger a buffer overflow to run code and bypass UEFI restrictions. The attacker already needs high local privileges, but successful exploitation could impact firmware trust boundaries.
Executive priority
Treat this as a high-priority firmware hygiene issue for Dell assets, especially sensitive workstations and servers. It is not evidenced as actively exploited in the provided sources, but successful exploitation could undermine UEFI protections.
Technical view
CVE-2021-21572 is a CWE-122 buffer overflow in Dell BIOSConnect. The CVSS 3.1 score is 7.2, with local attack vector, high complexity, high privileges required, user interaction required, changed scope, and high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to Dell systems using BIOSConnect, but the provided sources do not identify affected models or versions. Organizations with Dell endpoints or servers should compare their fleet against Dell's advisory rather than assuming all Dell systems are affected.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or other evidence of active exploitation. Exploitation requires authenticated local administrator access and user interaction, making opportunistic remote exploitation less likely, but firmware-level impact raises the consequence of compromise.
Researcher notes
Key uncertainty is affected-version scope: the CVE bundle lists BIOSConnect with unspecified versions. Validation should stay advisory-driven. Avoid assuming exploitability across all Dell platforms without matching Dell's model and BIOS guidance.
Mitigation direction
- Review Dell advisory 000188682 for affected models and remediation guidance.
- Update BIOS or firmware only according to Dell's published guidance.
- Limit and monitor local administrator access on Dell systems.
- Prioritize systems where firmware integrity is operationally critical.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Dell systems and identify whether BIOSConnect is present or enabled.
- Compare model and BIOS versions against Dell advisory 000188682.
- Review endpoint records for unexpected local administrator activity.
- Confirm remediation status through vendor-supported BIOS or firmware inventory tools.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-122: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupExecution behavior lookup
The CVE wording references code or command execution, so execution technique review may help defensive triage. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-21572 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 7.2 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H0.66Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
7.2HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000188682CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Heap-based Buffer Overflow
Heap-based Buffer Overflow represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.