CVE-2025-0044: Power Management Firmware Disclosure Flaw

CVE-2025-0044 Overview

CVE-2025-0044 is an out-of-bounds read vulnerability [CWE-125] in AMD power management firmware. A local attacker with low privileges can read memory outside the intended buffer boundaries. Successful exploitation may lead to a partial loss of confidentiality and availability on affected systems.

The vulnerability requires local access and low-level user privileges to exploit. No user interaction is needed to trigger the flaw. AMD documented the issue in security bulletin AMD-SB-6027.

Critical Impact

Local attackers with low privileges can read out-of-bounds memory in power management firmware, leading to partial information disclosure and partial availability impact on affected AMD platforms.

Affected Products

• AMD processors with affected power management firmware (see AMD-SB-6027)
• Platforms running vulnerable firmware versions identified by AMD
• Refer to the AMD advisory for the complete list of impacted product families

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-05-15 - CVE-2025-0044 published to NVD
• 2026-05-15 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-0044

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability resides in AMD power management firmware, a privileged firmware component that controls processor power states, voltage regulation, and frequency scaling. An out-of-bounds read occurs when the firmware reads data past the end, or before the beginning, of an intended buffer.

A local attacker authenticated with low privileges can invoke the affected firmware code path. The flaw permits reading memory locations outside the intended buffer. This can leak adjacent memory contents and may destabilize firmware execution, producing partial availability impact.

Because the vulnerable code runs in the power management firmware context, the attacker can reach data that would otherwise be inaccessible from a low-privileged user session. The scope of impact is confined to the affected component without altering integrity of the host operating system.

Root Cause

The root cause is missing or insufficient bounds checking on input or index values used to access a buffer within the power management firmware. The firmware dereferences a pointer or array index without first validating that the offset remains within the allocated region. This produces a classic out-of-bounds read condition tracked as [CWE-125].

Attack Vector

Exploitation requires local access to the target system with low-privilege credentials. The attacker invokes the affected firmware interface from the host operating system. No user interaction or elevated privileges are required.

No public proof-of-concept exploit is currently available. AMD has not reported in-the-wild exploitation. Refer to the AMD Security Bulletin AMD-SB-6027 for technical details on the affected interface.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-0044

Indicators of Compromise

• No public indicators of compromise have been published for CVE-2025-0044.
• Out-of-bounds reads in firmware typically leave no on-disk artifacts, making host-based IOC detection unreliable.
• Defenders should treat unexpected firmware crashes or power management instability as potential signals.

Detection Strategies

• Inventory AMD platforms and compare installed firmware versions against the fixed versions listed in AMD-SB-6027.
• Monitor system event logs for repeated power management errors, machine check exceptions, or unexpected reboots originating from low-privileged processes.
• Audit which local accounts can execute code that interacts with power management interfaces.

Monitoring Recommendations

• Track firmware patch deployment across endpoint and server fleets using a centralized vulnerability management system.
• Forward kernel and platform error logs to a centralized log platform for correlation against known-vulnerable firmware versions.
• Alert on anomalous local process behavior that issues unusual power management or model-specific register requests.

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-0044

Immediate Actions Required

• Review the AMD Security Bulletin AMD-SB-6027 and identify affected platforms in your inventory.
• Apply the firmware or microcode update provided by AMD or the platform OEM as soon as it is validated for production.
• Restrict local access on affected systems by enforcing least privilege and removing unnecessary local user accounts.

Patch Information

AMD has documented this vulnerability in security bulletin AMD-SB-6027. Firmware updates addressing CVE-2025-0044 are distributed through platform vendors and OEM BIOS updates. Consult the AMD Security Bulletin AMD-SB-6027 for the list of fixed firmware versions and update guidance.

Workarounds

• No official workaround has been published by AMD. Patching is the recommended remediation path.
• Limit the number of local low-privileged users on affected hosts until firmware updates are applied.
• Apply standard endpoint hardening to reduce the likelihood that an unauthorized actor obtains local access required for exploitation.

# Verify current AMD CPU and microcode revision on Linux
cat /proc/cpuinfo | grep -E 'model name|microcode' | head -4

# Check installed BIOS/firmware version (Linux)
sudo dmidecode -s bios-version
sudo dmidecode -s bios-release-date

# After applying the OEM BIOS update, reboot and re-verify
# that the microcode revision matches the fixed version in AMD-SB-6027