CVE-2021-0145 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting certain Intel(R) Processors. The root cause is improper initialization of shared resources within the processor architecture, which can lead to information disclosure. Specifically, an authenticated local user—meaning someone with legitimate access to the system—could exploit this flaw to gain unauthorized access to sensitive information residing in shared processor resources. The vulnerability does not require user interaction beyond authentication and does not impact integrity or availability, but it does compromise confidentiality. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 5.5, reflecting a medium severity level with the vector AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N, indicating local attack vector, low attack complexity, low privileges required, no user interaction, unchanged scope, high confidentiality impact, and no impact on integrity or availability. There are no known exploits in the wild as of the published date, and no specific patches are linked in the provided information, though Intel likely has released mitigations or microcode updates. The CWE associated is CWE-665, which relates to improper initialization, a common software/hardware design flaw that can lead to unintended data leakage. This vulnerability is relevant for any system using affected Intel processors, particularly in environments where multiple users share the same physical hardware or where local access is possible, such as multi-user workstations, servers, or virtualized environments.

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2021-0145 is the potential unauthorized disclosure of sensitive information by an authenticated local user. This could include leakage of cryptographic keys, passwords, or other confidential data processed or cached by the CPU. Organizations with multi-user systems, shared computing environments, or those that allow local access to multiple users are at higher risk. The vulnerability does not allow remote exploitation, limiting its impact to insider threats or attackers who have already gained some level of access. However, given the widespread use of Intel processors across European enterprises, government agencies, and critical infrastructure, the risk of data leakage could have significant consequences, including violation of GDPR data protection requirements if personal data is exposed. Additionally, sectors such as finance, healthcare, and defense, which rely heavily on confidentiality, could face increased risk. The lack of known exploits reduces immediate risk, but the vulnerability remains a concern for long-term security posture.

European organizations should implement a layered mitigation approach: 1) Apply all relevant Intel microcode updates and firmware patches as soon as they become available, even if not explicitly linked here, by monitoring Intel’s official advisories and OEM vendor updates. 2) Restrict local access to systems with affected processors to trusted personnel only, enforcing strict access controls and monitoring. 3) Employ endpoint security solutions that can detect anomalous local activity indicative of exploitation attempts. 4) Use virtualization and containerization best practices to isolate workloads and reduce shared resource exposure. 5) Conduct regular security audits and vulnerability assessments focusing on local privilege escalation and information disclosure vectors. 6) Educate users about the risks of local access and enforce strong authentication mechanisms to prevent unauthorized physical or logical access. 7) For highly sensitive environments, consider hardware-based security features such as Intel SGX or TPM to protect critical data in use. These steps go beyond generic patching advice by emphasizing access control, monitoring, and architectural defenses.