Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This AMD firmware issue could let a local attacker with low privileges trigger a denial of service on some 3rd Gen EPYC systems. The sources do not indicate data theft, remote compromise, or confirmed active exploitation.
Executive priority
Treat as a managed firmware remediation item, not an emergency internet-facing incident. Prioritize exposed shared servers, multi-user environments, and systems with strict availability requirements.
Technical view
CVE-2021-46791 is an insufficient input validation issue during parsing of an SMM binary in AMD AGESA for 3rd Gen EPYC. A crafted SMM executable binary may corrupt DRTM user application memory, potentially causing availability impact. CVSS is 5.5, local attack vector, low privileges required.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most relevant to organizations running AMD 3rd Gen EPYC platforms with affected AGESA or OEM firmware versions. This is not described as internet-exploitable; access is local with low privileges required.
Exploitation context
The CVE record and AMD advisory do not show CISA KEV listing or active exploitation evidence. The documented impact is denial of service through memory corruption related to SMM binary parsing, not confidentiality or integrity loss.
Researcher notes
The source bundle names CWE-787 and CVSS AV:L/PR:L/UI:N/A:H, but does not provide exploit details, fixed version mappings, or OEM-specific remediation data. Validation should rely on AMD and hardware vendor firmware guidance.
Mitigation direction
- Review AMD-SB-1032 for affected AGESA and platform guidance.
- Check OEM server BIOS or firmware advisories for 3rd Gen EPYC systems.
- Prioritize firmware updates during planned maintenance windows.
- Apply compensating access controls for local, low-privilege users on affected hosts.
Validation and detection
- Inventory 3rd Gen EPYC hosts and record BIOS, firmware, and AGESA versions.
- Compare installed versions against AMD-SB-1032 and OEM advisories.
- Confirm whether DRTM-related features are enabled on relevant systems.
- Track remediation evidence in vulnerability management records.
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-787: 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-2021-46791 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
- Medium
- CVSS
- 5.5 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H1.83.6Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
5.5MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://www.amd.com/en/corporate/product-security/bulletin/AMD-SB-1032CVE reference · vendor-advisory
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.
Out-of-bounds Write
Out-of-bounds Write represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.