# CVE-2019-1125: Windows Kernel Information Disclosure Vulnerability

> A local attacker can read privileged data across trust boundaries via speculative execution side channels in Windows.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.6 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N/E:P/RL:O/RC:C`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 3 Sep 2019
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2019-1125, GHSA-r79p-pw9q-gxrc, RHSA-2019:2695, RHSA-2019:3011, UBUNTU-CVE-2019-1125, USN-4096-1

## What is CVE-2019-1125?

CVE-2019-1125 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Microsoft Windows 10, published on 3 Sep 2019. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

An information disclosure vulnerability exists when certain central processing units (CPU) speculatively access memory. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could read privileged data across trust boundaries.
To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would have to log on to an affected system and run a specially crafted application. The vulnerability would not allow an attacker to elevate user rights directly, but it could be used to obtain information that could be used to try to compromise the affected system further.
On January 3, 2018, Microsoft released an advisory and security updates related to a newly-discovered class of hardware vulnerabilities (known as Spectre) involving speculative execution side channels that affect AMD, ARM, and Intel CPUs to varying degrees. This vulnerability, released on August 6, 2019, is a variant of the Spectre Variant 1 speculative execution side channel vulnerability and has been assigned CVE-2019-1125.
Microsoft released a security update on July 9, 2019 that addresses the vulnerability through a software change that mitigates how the CPU speculatively accesses memory. Note that this vulnerability does not require a microcode update from your device OEM.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2019-1125?

It affects 15 products.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `imgbased` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:7::hypervisor | All versions | 0:1.1.10-0.1.el7ev |
| `ovirt-node-ng` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:7::hypervisor | All versions | 0:4.3.6-0.20190820.0.el7ev |
| `ovirt-node-ng-nodectl` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:7::hypervisor | All versions | 0:4.3.6-0.20190820.0.el7ev |
| `python-imgbased` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:7::hypervisor | All versions | 0:1.1.10-0.1.el7ev |
| `python2-ovirt-node-ng-nodectl` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:7::hypervisor | All versions | 0:4.3.6-0.20190820.0.el7ev |
| `redhat-release-virtualization-host` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:7::hypervisor | All versions | 0:4.3.6-2.el7ev |
| `redhat-virtualization-host` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:7::hypervisor | All versions | 0:4.3.6-20190924.0.el7_7 |
| `redhat-virtualization-host-image-update` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:7::hypervisor | All versions | 0:4.3.6-20190924.0.el7_7 |
| `redhat-virtualization-host-image-update-placeholder` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:7::hypervisor | All versions | 0:4.3.6-2.el7ev |
| `kernel` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `kernel-abi-whitelists` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `kernel-debug` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `kernel-debug-debuginfo` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `kernel-debug-devel` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `kernel-debuginfo` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `kernel-debuginfo-common-x86_64` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `kernel-devel` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `kernel-doc` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `kernel-firmware` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `perf` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `perf-debuginfo` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `python-perf` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |
| `python-perf-debuginfo` | Red Hat:rhel_aus:6.5::server | All versions | 0:2.6.32-431.96.1.el6 |

Products: Microsoft Windows 10, Microsoft Windows 7, Microsoft Windows 8.1, Microsoft Windows Rt 8.1, Microsoft Windows Server 2008, Microsoft Windows Server 2012, Microsoft Windows Server 2016, Microsoft Windows Server 2019, Redhat Enterprise Linux Desktop, Redhat Enterprise Linux Server, Redhat Enterprise Linux Server Aus, Redhat Enterprise Linux Server Eus, Redhat Enterprise Linux Server Tus, Redhat Enterprise Linux Workstation, Redhat Virtualization Host.

## How do I fix CVE-2019-1125?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2019-1125 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2019-1125 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Public exploit code:

- This repository contains the sources and documentation for the SWAPGS attack PoC (CVE-2019-1125) (github_poc): https://github.com/bitdefender/swapgs-attack-poc
- Microsoft Windows Kernel - Information Disclosure (exploitdb)

## Other vulnerabilities in Microsoft Windows 10

- [CVE-2015-2426](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-2426/): Microsoft Windows Adobe Type Manager Library Remote Code Execution (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2015-1769](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-1769/): Microsoft Windows Mount Manager Privilege Escalation (medium 6.6, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2020-1467](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-1467/): Windows Hard Link Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2021-26424](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-26424/): Windows TCP/IP Remote Code Execution Vulnerability (critical 9.9)
- [CVE-2021-28476](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-28476/): Windows Hyper-V Remote Code Execution Vulnerability (critical 9.9)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2019-1125 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2019-1125 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Microsoft Windows 10, published on 3 Sep 2019. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2019-1125 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Microsoft Windows 10. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-1125/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-1125/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2019-1125
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-1125
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2019-1125

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-1125/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.