Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This is a firmware-level issue in TianoCore EDK II where early boot code reads a BootPerformanceTable pointer from NVRAM. The source bundle does not provide CVSS, impact, or confirmed exploitation. Business urgency depends on whether your platforms or firmware supply chain use affected EDK II code.
Executive priority
Prioritize supplier and firmware inventory validation. This is not supported as an emergency exploitation event by the supplied evidence, but firmware issues can be hard to detect and slow to remediate through OEM channels.
Technical view
In the PEI phase, EDK II reads a BootPerformanceTable pointer from an NVRAM variable. The CVE maps this to CWE-587. The provided description recommends setting PcdFirmwarePerformanceDataTableS3Support to FALSE. No exploit mechanics, affected downstream firmware list, or fixed versions are provided in the bundle.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely in firmware built from affected TianoCore EDK II Master code, including downstream OEM, IBV, or distribution builds. Standard application servers are only exposed if their platform firmware or build chain includes this vulnerable EDK II behavior.
Exploitation context
The bundle marks KEV as false and provides no cited evidence of active exploitation or public exploit use. Practical exploitation context is unclear from the provided sources and should not be assumed without vendor-specific firmware analysis.
Researcher notes
The public bundle is thin: no CVSS vector, no patch commit, and no detailed impact narrative are included. The strongest concrete remediation signal is the TianoCore recommendation to disable FirmwarePerformanceDataTable S3 support via PcdFirmwarePerformanceDataTableS3Support.
Mitigation direction
- Check TianoCore and firmware vendor guidance for CVE-2021-28216.
- Set PcdFirmwarePerformanceDataTableS3Support to FALSE where applicable.
- Update affected EDK II or downstream firmware packages when vendor fixes are available.
- Review the Debian LTS advisory if using relevant Debian EDK II packages.
- Request OEM or IBV confirmation for shipped platform firmware exposure.
Validation and detection
- Inventory systems and products using TianoCore EDK II-derived firmware.
- Review firmware build configuration for PcdFirmwarePerformanceDataTableS3Support.
- Check vendor advisories for affected firmware versions and fixed releases.
- Confirm deployed firmware versions against OEM or distribution guidance.
- Document any systems where firmware provenance cannot be verified.
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-587: 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 lookupCVE-2021-28216 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
- Unknown
- CVSS
- Not scored
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
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 and timeline data
No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://bugzilla.tianocore.org/show_bug.cgi?id=2957CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2025/06/msg00007.htmlCVE reference
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.
Assignment of a Fixed Address to a Pointer
Assignment of a Fixed Address to a Pointer represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.