CVE-2025-21090: Denial of Service in Intel(R) Xeon(R) processors
CVE-2025-21090 is a denial of service vulnerability affecting specific Intel Xeon processors, allowing an unprivileged actor to render the host machine inoperative using the AMX and AVX CPU instructions. The vulnerability impacts several Intel Xeon processor families including Sapphire Rapids, Emerald Rapids, and Granite Rapids. Google has stated no customer action is required as they will proactively update systems during planned maintenance. No evidence of exploitation has been reported. The CVSS score is 4.1, indicating a medium severity level.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
CVE-2025-21090 is a denial of service vulnerability in Intel Xeon processors where an unprivileged actor can use the AMX CPU instruction combined with the AVX CPU instruction to cause the host machine to become inoperative. Affected processor families include Sapphire Rapids (C3, Z3, H3, A3, v5p VM), Emerald Rapids (N4, C4, M4, A3 Ultra, A4 VM), and Granite Rapids (N4, C4 VM). Google has been notified and will apply updates proactively during maintenance windows. No active exploitation has been observed.
Potential Impact
The vulnerability allows an unprivileged attacker to cause a denial of service condition on affected Intel Xeon processors, potentially disrupting availability of systems running on these CPUs. There is no reported evidence of exploitation in the wild. The impact is limited to denial of service without privilege escalation or data compromise for this specific CVE.
Mitigation Recommendations
No customer action is required. Google will proactively update affected systems during standard and planned maintenance windows. Users should monitor vendor advisories for updates. Patch status is not explicitly stated; check vendor advisories for current remediation guidance.
CVE-2025-21090: Denial of Service in Intel(R) Xeon(R) processors
Description
CVE-2025-21090 is a denial of service vulnerability affecting specific Intel Xeon processors, allowing an unprivileged actor to render the host machine inoperative using the AMX and AVX CPU instructions. The vulnerability impacts several Intel Xeon processor families including Sapphire Rapids, Emerald Rapids, and Granite Rapids. Google has stated no customer action is required as they will proactively update systems during planned maintenance. No evidence of exploitation has been reported. The CVSS score is 4.1, indicating a medium severity level.
CVSS v4.0
Score 4.1medium
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
CVE-2025-21090 is a denial of service vulnerability in Intel Xeon processors where an unprivileged actor can use the AMX CPU instruction combined with the AVX CPU instruction to cause the host machine to become inoperative. Affected processor families include Sapphire Rapids (C3, Z3, H3, A3, v5p VM), Emerald Rapids (N4, C4, M4, A3 Ultra, A4 VM), and Granite Rapids (N4, C4 VM). Google has been notified and will apply updates proactively during maintenance windows. No active exploitation has been observed.
Potential Impact
The vulnerability allows an unprivileged attacker to cause a denial of service condition on affected Intel Xeon processors, potentially disrupting availability of systems running on these CPUs. There is no reported evidence of exploitation in the wild. The impact is limited to denial of service without privilege escalation or data compromise for this specific CVE.
Mitigation Recommendations
No customer action is required. Google will proactively update affected systems during standard and planned maintenance windows. Users should monitor vendor advisories for updates. Patch status is not explicitly stated; check vendor advisories for current remediation guidance.
Technical Details
- Data Version
- 5.1
- Assigner Short Name
- intel
- Date Reserved
- 2025-01-09T04:00:22.738Z
- Cvss Version
- 4.0
- State
- PUBLISHED
Threat ID: 689b7750ad5a09ad003492e4
Added to database: 08/12/2025, 17:18:08 UTC
Last enriched: 08/04/2026, 13:27:09 UTC
Last updated: 08/05/2026, 00:41:07 UTC
Views: 216
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