AMD Platform Management Framework CVE-2025-0028

Attacker must have local authenticated access to a system running affected AMD Ryzen processors (6000, 7000, 8000 series) with the vulnerable AMD Platform Management Framework driver loaded. Requires PR:L (low-privilege local account credentials) but no administrative rights for initial exploitation. The CVSS vector AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N indicates exploitation works against standard default AMD driver installations without requiring specific non-default configurations or user interaction. Exploitation is limited to systems physically running the affected AMD processor families with PMF driver active-remote-only networks without local access vectors are not at risk. The SC:H (high subsequent system impact) indicates that in virtualized environments, guest-level compromise with these prerequisites can potentially affect the hypervisor or other VMs, though this depends on specific virtualization isolation mechanisms.

The CVSS 4.0 score of 8.3 with local attack vector (AV:L) and low privileges required (PR:L) indicates serious risk for multi-user systems, shared environments, and scenarios where attackers have already established initial access through phishing, supply chain, or other vectors. High confidentiality and availability impact with subsequent system scope change (SC:H/SA:H) elevates risk in virtualized data centers where lateral movement is possible. However, no CISA KEV listing or EPSS data provided suggests exploitation has not been observed in the wild. The low attack complexity (AC:L) means once an attacker has local low-privilege access, exploitation is straightforward without race conditions or timing dependencies. Real-world priority depends heavily on deployment context: critical for multi-tenant cloud infrastructure running affected AMD processors, moderate for single-user workstations with robust access controls. The absence of public POC code reduces immediate risk, but AMD processor market penetration in enterprise laptops and embedded systems makes this a significant supply chain concern. Key limiting factor is the PR:L requirement-attackers need valid local credentials first, making this a second-stage attack rather than initial compromise vector.

An attacker who has compromised a standard user account on an enterprise laptop running an AMD Ryzen 7040 processor through phishing or credential theft loads a malicious program that interacts with the PMF driver. The program triggers the unchecked return value condition, manipulating the driver to read kernel memory containing credentials or cryptographic keys, then writes shellcode to kernel space to achieve SYSTEM-level privileges. With elevated access, the attacker installs persistent backdoor and exfiltrates sensitive corporate data. No public POC exists yet, but the low complexity suggests proof-of-concept development is feasible for skilled attackers.