CVE-2021-26360 is a high-severity vulnerability affecting AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series and PRO W6000 Series graphics cards, specifically targeting the AMD secure processor (ASP) embedded within these GPUs. The vulnerability allows an attacker with local access and low privileges (requiring limited privileges but no user interaction) to make unauthorized modifications to the security configuration of the system-on-chip (SOC) registers. This unauthorized modification can lead to corruption of the encrypted memory contents managed by the AMD secure processor. The ASP is responsible for handling sensitive operations and secure execution environments, so compromising its encrypted memory could enable arbitrary code execution within the ASP environment. This represents a critical breach of confidentiality, integrity, and availability within the secure processor, potentially allowing attackers to bypass security controls, escalate privileges, or persist undetected. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-284 (Improper Access Control), indicating that insufficient restrictions on access to critical security configuration registers are the root cause. The CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.8 reflects a high severity due to the high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability, combined with the relatively low complexity of exploitation (local access with low privileges and no user interaction required). Although no known exploits are currently reported in the wild, the potential for arbitrary code execution in a secure environment makes this vulnerability a significant security concern. The affected software includes AMD Radeon Software, AMD Radeon Pro Software Enterprise, and Enterprise Driver versions that support these GPU series. No official patches or mitigation links are provided in the data, indicating that organizations must monitor AMD advisories closely for updates. Overall, this vulnerability highlights the risks associated with local privilege escalation and secure processor compromise in modern GPU architectures.

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2021-26360 can be substantial, especially for those relying on AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series and PRO W6000 Series GPUs in enterprise environments, including workstations and servers used for graphics-intensive applications, virtualization, or secure computing tasks. Successful exploitation could lead to unauthorized access to sensitive data processed or stored within the secure processor, undermining hardware-based security guarantees. This could facilitate further attacks such as privilege escalation, persistent malware implantation, or data exfiltration. Organizations in sectors with high security requirements—such as finance, government, defense, and critical infrastructure—may face increased risks due to the potential compromise of trusted execution environments. Additionally, the vulnerability could affect the integrity of cryptographic operations or digital rights management (DRM) systems relying on the ASP. The requirement for local access limits remote exploitation but does not eliminate risk, as insider threats, compromised endpoints, or malware with local execution capabilities could leverage this vulnerability. Given the high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability, European organizations must prioritize detection and mitigation to prevent potential breaches and maintain compliance with data protection regulations such as GDPR.

Specific mitigation recommendations include: 1) Immediate inventory and identification of systems using AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series and PRO W6000 Series GPUs, particularly those running affected AMD Radeon Software or Enterprise Drivers. 2) Restrict local access to systems with these GPUs to trusted users only, enforcing strict access controls and monitoring for unauthorized local login attempts. 3) Implement endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions capable of detecting suspicious modifications to SOC registers or anomalous behavior within the secure processor environment. 4) Apply the principle of least privilege rigorously to limit the ability of low-privilege users or processes to interact with hardware registers or driver components. 5) Monitor AMD security advisories for patches or firmware updates addressing this vulnerability and deploy them promptly once available. 6) Consider isolating critical systems with these GPUs from general user environments to reduce the attack surface. 7) Conduct regular security audits and penetration testing focusing on local privilege escalation vectors and hardware security modules. 8) Educate system administrators and security teams about the risks associated with local access vulnerabilities in GPU secure processors to enhance vigilance and incident response readiness.