CVE-2019-1125: An information disclosure vulnerability exists when certain central processing units (CPU) speculatively access memory. An attacker who successfully e...

Description

An information disclosure vulnerability exists when certain central processing units (CPU) speculatively access memory. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could read privileged data across trust boundaries. To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would have to log on to an affected system and run a specially crafted application. The vulnerability would not allow an attacker to elevate user rights directly, but it could be used to obtain information that could be used to try to compromise the affected system further. On January 3, 2018, Microsoft released an advisory and security updates related to a newly-discovered class of hardware vulnerabilities (known as Spectre) involving speculative execution side channels that affect AMD, ARM, and Intel CPUs to varying degrees. This vulnerability, released on August 6, 2019, is a variant of the Spectre Variant 1 speculative execution side channel vulnerability and has been assigned CVE-2019-1125. Microsoft released a security update on July 9, 2019 that addresses the vulnerability through a software change that mitigates how the CPU speculatively accesses memory. Note that this vulnerability does not require a microcode update from your device OEM.

Metrics

CVSS 3.1

5.6/10

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N

EPSS Probability

4.52%

90.3th percentile

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days. Learn more

Affected Software

Vendor	Product	Versions	Update
Microsoft	Windows 10	All versions	—
Microsoft	Windows 10	1607	—
Microsoft	Windows 10	1703	—
Microsoft	Windows 10	1709	—
Microsoft	Windows 10	1803	—
Microsoft	Windows 10	1809	—
Microsoft	Windows 10	1903	—
Microsoft	Windows 7	All versions	Sp1
Microsoft	Windows 8.1	All versions	—
Microsoft	Windows Rt 8.1	All versions	—
Microsoft	Windows Server 2008	All versions	Sp2
Microsoft	Windows Server 2008	r2	Sp1
Microsoft	Windows Server 2012	All versions	—
Microsoft	Windows Server 2012	r2	—
Microsoft	Windows Server 2016	All versions	—
Microsoft	Windows Server 2016	1803	—
Microsoft	Windows Server 2016	1903	—
Microsoft	Windows Server 2019	All versions	—
Redhat	Virtualization Host	4.0	—
Redhat	Enterprise Linux Desktop	7.0	—
Redhat	Enterprise Linux Server	7.0	—
Redhat	Enterprise Linux Server Aus	7.7	—
Redhat	Enterprise Linux Server Eus	7.7	—
Redhat	Enterprise Linux Server Tus	7.7	—
Redhat	Enterprise Linux Workstation	7.0	—

References

Timeline

Published: Sep 3, 2019
Last Modified: Jun 17, 2026
Status: Modified

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2019-1125?

An information disclosure vulnerability exists when certain central processing units (CPU) speculatively access memory. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could read privileged data across trust boundaries. To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would have to log on to an affected system and run a specially crafted application. The vulnerability would not allow an attacker to elevate user rights directly, but it could be used to obtain information that could be used to try to compromise the affected system further. On January 3, 2018, Microsoft released an advisory and security updates related to a newly-discovered class of hardware vulnerabilities (known as Spectre) involving speculative execution side channels that affect AMD, ARM, and Intel CPUs to varying degrees. This vulnerability, released on August 6, 2019, is a variant of the Spectre Variant 1 speculative execution side channel vulnerability and has been assigned CVE-2019-1125. Microsoft released a security update on July 9, 2019 that addresses the vulnerability through a software change that mitigates how the CPU speculatively accesses memory. Note that this vulnerability does not require a microcode update from your device OEM.

How severe is CVE-2019-1125?

CVE-2019-1125 has a CVSS score of 5.6/10 (MEDIUM severity). The EPSS model estimates a 4.52% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

How do I fix CVE-2019-1125?

Check the vendor references and advisories linked above for patched versions and mitigation guidance. You can also run a Strix scan to test if your systems are affected.