CVE-2025-14304: ASRock Motherboard DMA Privilege Escalation

CVE-2025-14304 Overview

CVE-2025-14304 is a Protection Mechanism Failure vulnerability [CWE-693] affecting certain motherboard models produced by ASRock and its subsidiaries ASRockRack and ASRockInd. The firmware fails to enable the Input-Output Memory Management Unit (IOMMU) during the pre-boot phase. As a result, an unauthenticated attacker with physical access can connect a Direct Memory Access (DMA) capable PCIe device and read or write arbitrary physical memory before the operating system kernel and its security features load. This class of attack bypasses OS-level memory protections and can compromise system integrity, disclose secrets loaded in memory, and enable persistent implants.

Critical Impact
A physically present attacker with a DMA-capable PCIe or Thunderbolt device can read and modify arbitrary system memory before OS protections are active, enabling credential theft, secure boot bypass, and pre-boot implant deployment.

Affected Products

ASRock motherboards (specific models per vendor advisory)
ASRockRack server motherboards
ASRockInd industrial motherboards

Discovery Timeline

2025-12-17 - CVE-2025-14304 published to the National Vulnerability Database
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-14304

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability originates in the UEFI/BIOS firmware on affected ASRock motherboards. During platform initialization, the firmware does not configure or enable the IOMMU (Intel VT-d or AMD-Vi) before handing control to the operating system loader. The IOMMU is the hardware component responsible for translating and restricting DMA transactions issued by PCIe devices, ensuring that peripherals can only access memory ranges explicitly mapped to them.

Without an active IOMMU, any PCIe endpoint enumerated by the firmware retains unrestricted access to system RAM. This gives an attacker a hardware-level primitive that no software mitigation on the target system can revoke, because the exposure exists before any operating system code executes.

Root Cause

The root cause is a missing or incorrect protection mechanism in the firmware boot flow. The IOMMU either remains disabled by default or is not programmed to establish protected memory ranges during the DXE and BDS phases of UEFI initialization. When the operating system boot loader begins execution, physical memory containing bootloader code, kernel images, cryptographic keys, and disk encryption secrets remains fully exposed to peripheral devices on the PCIe bus.

Attack Vector

Exploitation requires physical access to the target system and a DMA-capable device such as an FPGA board, a specialized PCIe adapter, or a Thunderbolt peripheral connected through a PCIe-tunneling port. The attacker inserts the device while the system is powered on or during the boot sequence, then uses it to issue arbitrary read and write memory requests. Public tooling exists in the security research community for performing DMA memory acquisition and patching against systems lacking IOMMU enforcement. Successful exploitation compromises confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the platform. Refer to the TW-CERT Security Advisory and the ASRock Security Support Page for vendor-specific technical details.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-14304

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected PCIe device enumeration in UEFI logs or operating system PCI inventories, particularly during boot.
Kernel or hypervisor messages indicating IOMMU is disabled or absent on hardware known to support VT-d or AMD-Vi.
Physical evidence of tampering with PCIe slots, M.2 sockets, or Thunderbolt ports on affected hardware.

Detection Strategies

Inventory firmware versions across ASRock, ASRockRack, and ASRockInd systems and correlate against the vendor advisories.
Query operating system telemetry for dmar or ivrs ACPI table presence and IOMMU activation status at boot.
Monitor for unauthorized configuration changes to UEFI settings including virtualization, VT-d, or AMD-Vi options.

Monitoring Recommendations

Collect and centralize UEFI event logs and platform boot telemetry into a security data lake for correlation.
Alert on hosts reporting IOMMU: disabled or missing DMA remapping during kernel initialization.
Track physical access events for critical servers, workstations, and industrial control endpoints running affected motherboards.

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-14304

Immediate Actions Required

Identify all systems using affected ASRock, ASRockRack, or ASRockInd motherboards and prioritize those in physically accessible environments.
Apply the firmware updates published on the ASRock Security Support Page and the ASRock Industrial Security Center as soon as vendor patches are available for each affected model.
Enable IOMMU (VT-d or AMD-Vi) in UEFI setup on updated systems and verify activation at the OS level.
Restrict physical access to affected hardware using locked chassis, port blockers, and monitored server rooms.

Patch Information

ASRock and its subsidiaries are publishing firmware updates through their security portals. Consult the TW-CERT Security Advisory and the TW-CERT Incident Report for the current list of affected models and remediated firmware versions. Apply the vendor-supplied UEFI update matching the exact motherboard SKU, then verify IOMMU is enabled after flashing.

Workarounds

Physically block or disable unused PCIe slots, M.2 sockets, and Thunderbolt ports where feasible.
Enable pre-boot authentication and full-disk encryption with keys stored in a TPM to reduce the value of memory disclosure.
Disable Thunderbolt DMA passthrough in UEFI on systems where the feature is not required.
Deploy tamper-evident seals on chassis and log any physical maintenance activity for auditability.

bash

# Verify IOMMU status on Linux after applying firmware update and enabling VT-d/AMD-Vi
dmesg | grep -e DMAR -e IOMMU -e AMD-Vi

# Confirm DMA remapping is active
ls /sys/class/iommu/