Executive brief
A critical vulnerability exists in the Intel Data Center Graphics Driver for VMware ESXi, a component used to manage graphics hardware in virtualized data center environments. A local attacker with administrative privileges can exploit a buffer overflow to execute malicious code with high-level system permissions. This could lead to a complete takeover of the host system, compromising all data and virtual machines running on the affected server.
Technical details
A classic buffer overflow (CWE-120) exists in the Intel Data Center Graphics Driver for VMware ESXi within the Ring 1 device driver layer. The vulnerability is triggered by a lack of proper input size checking when copying data to a buffer. An attacker with high privileges (PR:H) on the local system can exploit this flaw to achieve local code execution and escalate privileges further. Successful exploitation impacts the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of both the local system and the broader environment (Subsequent impacts). Intel has released version 2.0.2 to mitigate this issue.
Affected products
- Intel Data Center Graphics Driver for VMware ESXi before 2.0.2
Timeline
- 2026-05-12: disclosed
- 2026-05-12: advisory: Intel-SA-01402 published
- 2026-05-12: patched: Version 2.0.2 released