CVE-2017-5689
CVE-2017-5689 is a security flaw in Intel Active Management Technology (AMT), Small Business Technology (SBT), and Standard Manageability. Someone who already has a foothold can use Intel Active Management Technology (AMT), Small Business Technology (SBT), and Standard Manageability to take full control of the machine. The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) added it to its catalog of flaws known to be used in attacks on 28 Jan 2022.[1]
Intel Active Management Technology (AMT), Small Business Technology (SBT), and Standard Manageability is business software or equipment. Most families won’t have it, but attackers break into it to get inside companies, and from there to what those companies hold about their customers, patients and staff. Intel has published a fix or advice.
Description
CISA calls it a privilege escalation in Intel Active Management Technology (AMT), Small Business Technology (SBT), and Standard Manageability. In its words: “Intel products contain a vulnerability which can allow attackers to perform privilege escalation.”[1]
The CVE record adds: “An unprivileged network attacker could gain system privileges to provisioned Intel manageability SKUs: Intel Active Management Technology (AMT) and Intel Standard Manageability (ISM). An unprivileged local attacker could provision manageability features gaining unprivileged network or local system privileges on Intel manageability SKUs: Intel Active Management Technology (AMT), Intel Standard Manageability (ISM), and Intel Small Business Technology (SBT).”[2]
The underlying weakness is improper privilege management (CWE-269), in MITRE’s list of common software weaknesses.
It scores 9.8 out of 10 on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System, which rates it critical, scored by NVD using CVSS 3.1.[2]
Affected versions
NVD’s record doesn’t list version ranges for it; Intel’s advisory has them[3]. CISA names the product as Intel Active Management Technology (AMT), Small Business Technology (SBT), and Standard Manageability.
Most families won’t have Intel Active Management Technology (AMT), Small Business Technology (SBT), and Standard Manageability; it’s for whoever looks after IT at work.
Exploitation
CISA added it to its catalog of known exploited vulnerabilities on 28 Jan 2022, 1,732 days after it was made public. CISA lists a flaw only when it has reliable evidence of it being exploited, and gave US federal agencies until 28 Jul 2022 to fix it.[1]
FIRST’s Exploit Prediction Scoring System, which estimates how likely a flaw is to be used in attacks in the next 30 days from what it sees across the internet, puts it at 92%. That’s in the top 1% of the flaws it scores.[4]
CISA assesses it as automatable: attackers can run it against many targets at once.
CISA doesn’t say who was attacked, or how.
Fix
Intel has published a fix or advice.[3] CISA’s required action: “Apply updates per vendor instructions.”[1]
- Check whether you use it.Intel Active Management Technology (AMT), Small Business Technology (SBT), and Standard Manageability is business software or equipment, so most families won’t have it. If you run a business, or work from home on company equipment, ask whoever looks after your IT.
- Send this page to your IT person.Ask them to confirm it’s fixed, or not in use. CISA gave US government agencies until 28 Jul 2022 to fix it.
- If it can’t be fixed, take it offline.CISA’s advice when there’s no fix is to stop using the product, or take it off the internet, until there is one.
You can’t fix someone else’s server, but you can watch for what follows a break-in like this: a breach notice, a password reset you didn’t ask for, or a scam message that knows things it shouldn’t. HARD watches for those for you and your family.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| The flaw is made public in the National Vulnerability Database, with a severity score of 9.8.[2] | |
| CISA adds it to its catalog of flaws known to be used in attacks.[1] | |
| CISA’s deadline for US government agencies to fix it.[1] | |
| FIRST puts the odds of it being used in attacks in the next 30 days at 92%.[4] |
See also
Other Intel flaws
- CVE-2015-2291, Intel Ethernet Diagnostics Driver for Windows: denial-of-service ·
Other improper privilege management flaws
- CVE-2026-102490, Zammad GmbH Zammad: improper privilege management ·
- CVE-2026-84869, ConnectWise ScreenConnect: improper privilege management and missing authorization ·
- CVE-2026-46817, Oracle E-Business Suite: improper privilege management ·
- CVE-2026-21533, Microsoft Windows: improper privilege management ·
- CVE-2024-8068, Citrix Session Recording: improper privilege management ·
Added the same day
- CVE-2022-22587, Apple iOS and macOS: memory corruption ·
- CVE-2021-20038, SonicWall SMA 100 Appliances: stack-based buffer overflow ·
- CVE-2020-5722, Grandstream UCM6200: networks UCM6200 series SQL injection ·
- CVE-2020-0787, Microsoft Windows: background intelligent transfer service (BITS) improper privilege management ·
- CVE-2014-7169, GNU Bourne-Again Shell (Bash): arbitrary code execution ·
References
- ^ Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. “Intel Active Management Technology (AMT), Small Business Technology (SBT), and Standard Manageability Privilege Escalation Vulnerability”. Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, added 28 Jan 2022.
- ^ National Institute of Standards and Technology. “CVE-2017-5689 Detail”. National Vulnerability Database, published 2 May 2017.
- ^ Intel. Advisories and fixes: security-center.intel.com.
- ^ FIRST. “Exploit Prediction Scoring System”. EPSS 0.922, percentile 99.8, 31 Oct 2026.
- CVE Program. “CVE-2017-5689”. The official CVE record.
This article is built from CISA’s catalog (version 2026.10.30), NVD’s record and FIRST’s scores, kept in HARD’s database and checked every morning. The plain English is HARD’s.