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Intel AI Playground EUVDEUVD-2025-209795

| CVE-2025-36515 MEDIUM
Uncontrolled Search Path Element (CWE-427)
2026-05-12 intel GHSA-v94q-wvcj-w2m3
5.4
CVSS 4.0 · Vendor: intel
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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Gain local low-privilege access
  2. Delivery
    Identify writable directory in AI Playground search path
  3. Exploit
    Plant malicious DLL or executable
  4. Execution
    Wait for authenticated user to launch AI Playground
  5. Persist
    Application resolves search path, loads malicious binary
  6. Impact
    Execute arbitrary code with escalated privileges

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A08:2025 - Software or Data Integrity Failures
ASVS 5.0
V13 - Configuration Search path element control
Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires all of the following simultaneously: (1) local access to the target system, (2) the attacker must have at least low-privilege (authenticated) access to write to a directory in the AI Playground search path, (3) the specific attack conditions flagged by AT:P must be present - implying a non-default or environmentally specific configuration of the search path or writable directory, (4) a legitimate authenticated user must actively interact with the AI Playground application to trigger the vulnerable path resolution (UI:A), and (5) attack complexity is rated high (AC:H), meaning successful exploitation is not straightforward and may require precise timing or environment staging. Exploitation is bounded to the local system - no network-based delivery is possible (AV:L). Remote unauthenticated exploitation is ruled out by the CVSS vector. The requirement for user interaction and specific attack conditions significantly limits opportunistic or automated exploitation.

Impact

Real-world risk is moderate-to-low despite the high CIA impact on the vulnerable system. The CVSS 4.0 score of 5.4 reflects the cumulative constraints: AV:L (local access only), AC:H (high complexity), AT:P (attack requirements present), PR:L (requires authenticated user), and UI:A (requires active user interaction). EPSS of 0.01% at the 3rd percentile signals extremely low probability of observed exploitation in the wild. SSVC rates exploitation as none and automatable as no - consistent with the manual, multi-condition nature of this attack. SSVC technical impact is rated total, which aligns with VC:H/VI:H/VA:H. The vulnerability is not listed in CISA KEV and no POC has been identified. Net assessment: this is a genuine local privilege escalation with high technical impact, but the combination of local access, high complexity, active user interaction, and non-default attack conditions dramatically constrains real-world exploitability. Organizations with untrusted local users or shared workstations running AI Playground are the primary risk population.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

A local low-privileged attacker sharing a workstation with a legitimate AI Playground user plants a malicious DLL or executable in a writable directory that falls within the application's uncontrolled search path. When the legitimate user subsequently launches or uses AI Playground - providing the required active user interaction - the application resolves the search path and loads the attacker's malicious file instead of the intended library, executing arbitrary code with the privileges of the application or the user session. No public proof-of-concept has been identified at time of analysis.

This Month Plan within 30 days. Why: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9).
No patch listed yet 0.0% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Jul 23, 2026

Privilege escalation in Intel AI Playground software before version 3.0.0 alpha via an uncontrolled search path element (CWE-427) allows a local low-privileged attacker to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges. Exploitation requires an authenticated user, active user interaction, high attack complexity, and specific attack conditions (AT:P), making this a constrained but high-impact local privilege escalation. No public exploit code has been identified and CISA SSVC rates current exploitation as none, consistent with the extremely low EPSS score of 0.01% (3rd percentile).

RemediationAI

The primary remediation is to upgrade Intel AI Playground software to version 3.0.0 alpha or later as specified in the Intel security advisory INTEL-SA-01438 at https://intel.com/content/www/us/en/security-center/advisory/intel-sa-01438.html. If upgrading immediately is not possible, compensating controls should focus on restricting write access to directories included in the application's search path - specifically ensuring that non-administrator users cannot place files in any directory resolved during AI Playground execution. Reviewing and hardening the PATH environment variable and DLL search order for affected systems can also reduce exposure. Limiting AI Playground usage to dedicated, single-user, or administrator-only accounts removes the unprivileged adversary prerequisite entirely. Note that these mitigations require per-system configuration and may not be auditable at scale without endpoint management tooling.

Affected VersionsENISA

AI Playground software before version 3.0.0 alpha

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Technical ContextAI · show details

CWE-427 (Uncontrolled Search Path Element) describes a class of vulnerability commonly manifesting as DLL hijacking, binary planting, or insecure PATH resolution - where an application searches for executables or libraries in directories that an unprivileged user can write to. Intel's AI Playground software is a Ring 3 (user-mode) application as indicated in the description, confirmed by CPE cpe:2.3:a:n/a:ai_playground_software. When the application spawns child processes or loads libraries, it resolves names through an attacker-influenceable search path, allowing a malicious binary to be loaded in place of the legitimate one. The CVSS 4.0 metric AT:P (Attack Requirements: Present) confirms that specific preconditions beyond just local access must exist for exploitation.

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Severity by source

Vendor (intel) PRIMARY 5.4 MEDIUM
CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:H/AT:P/PR:L/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
vuln.today AI 6.7 MEDIUM

Local access only (AV:L), high complexity and specific conditions required (AC:H), low-privilege authenticated user needed (PR:L), active user interaction required (UI:R), no scope change (S:U), full CIA impact on vulnerable system.

3.1 AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:L/AC:H/AT:P/PR:L/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (intel).

CVSS VectorVendor: intel

Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
High
Attack Requirements
Present
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
Active
Vulnerable system: Confidentiality
High
Vulnerable system: Integrity
High
Vulnerable system: Availability
High
Subsequent system: Confidentiality
None
Subsequent system: Integrity
None
Subsequent system: Availability
None

Lifecycle Timeline

3
CVSS changed
May 12, 2026 - 17:22 NVD
5.4 (MEDIUM)
CVE Published
May 12, 2026 - 16:35 nvd
MEDIUM 5.4
CVE Published
May 12, 2026 - 16:35 nvd
UNKNOWN (no severity yet)

DescriptionCVE.org

Uncontrolled search path for some AI Playground software before version 3.0.0 alpha within Ring 3: User Applications may allow an escalation of privilege. Unprivileged software adversary with an authenticated user combined with a high complexity attack may enable escalation of privilege. This result may potentially occur via local access when attack requirements are present without special internal knowledge and requires active user interaction. The potential vulnerability may impact the confidentiality (high), integrity (high) and availability (high) of the vulnerable system, resulting in subsequent system confidentiality (none), integrity (none) and availability (none) impacts.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.0%
Top 97% exploitable
Prevalence
Low
niche Intel developer tool for AI experimentation
Data Quality
5 sources
Confidence: Medium

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity MEDIUM
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.0%
Patch available No
Active threat No
Deciding rule
MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Defer
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Small
Automatable
No
Human Impact· derived
Medium
Technical Impact
Total

Priority Score

27
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +27
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Privilege escalation occurs when an attacker leverages flaws in access control mechanisms to gain permissions beyond what they were originally granted.

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