CVE-2024-39279 is a vulnerability identified in the UEFI firmware of certain Intel processors, characterized by insufficient granularity in access control mechanisms. UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) is a critical low-level firmware interface responsible for initializing hardware and bootstrapping the operating system. The flaw allows an authenticated user with low privileges (local access) to potentially induce a denial of service condition by exploiting the inadequate access control in the firmware layer. This means that a user who already has some level of access to the system can escalate their ability to disrupt system availability, potentially causing system crashes or reboots that interrupt normal operations. The vulnerability does not require user interaction beyond the initial authenticated access and does not affect confidentiality or integrity of data, focusing solely on availability. The CVSS 4.0 vector (AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:H) indicates that the attack vector is local, with low attack complexity, partial attack prerequisites, low privileges required, no user interaction, no impact on confidentiality or integrity, but high impact on availability. No known exploits have been reported in the wild at the time of publication, but the vulnerability remains a concern for environments where uptime and availability are critical. The affected versions are not explicitly listed but are referenced in Intel advisories and related documentation. The vulnerability was reserved in June 2024 and published in February 2025, indicating a recent discovery and disclosure timeline.

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2024-39279 is the potential disruption of critical systems due to denial of service conditions triggered by local authenticated users. This can affect enterprise servers, workstations, and embedded systems running on vulnerable Intel processors, leading to operational downtime, loss of productivity, and potential financial losses. Critical infrastructure sectors such as energy, transportation, healthcare, and finance, which rely heavily on Intel-based hardware, may experience service interruptions if exploited. Although the vulnerability does not compromise data confidentiality or integrity, the availability impact can hinder business continuity and incident response capabilities. Additionally, organizations with shared or multi-user environments are at higher risk since any authenticated user could potentially exploit the flaw. The absence of known exploits reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, especially in insider threat scenarios or environments with weak access controls. The medium severity rating suggests that while the vulnerability is significant, it is not critical, but it still requires timely remediation to prevent exploitation.

To mitigate CVE-2024-39279, European organizations should: 1) Monitor Intel and system vendor advisories closely for firmware updates addressing this vulnerability and apply patches promptly once available. 2) Enforce strict local access controls by limiting authenticated user privileges and implementing robust user authentication mechanisms to reduce the risk of unauthorized local access. 3) Employ endpoint security solutions that can detect unusual firmware or system behavior indicative of exploitation attempts. 4) Conduct regular audits of user accounts and permissions to ensure only necessary users have local access. 5) Implement network segmentation and isolation for critical systems to minimize the impact of potential DoS conditions. 6) Educate IT staff and users about the risks associated with local access vulnerabilities and the importance of maintaining secure access policies. 7) Consider deploying hardware-based security features such as Intel Boot Guard or Trusted Platform Module (TPM) to enhance firmware integrity and prevent unauthorized modifications. 8) Maintain comprehensive incident response plans that include procedures for handling firmware-level DoS incidents to minimize downtime.