CVE-2025-13668

Executive Summary

CVE-2025-13668 is a potential security vulnerability in Intel's Quartus® Prime Pro Edition Design Software that may allow escalation of privilege. The vulnerability has a CVSS score of 0.0 (unassigned) and an EPSS score of 0.0%, indicating no active exploitation in the wild. No public proof-of-concept code, exploit-db entries, or nuclei templates are available. The vendor (Intel) has not yet released a patch, and the exact vulnerable version range is unknown. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-269 (Improper Privilege Management) and MITRE ATT&CK tactic T1068 (Exploitation for Privilege Escalation).

Note: This vulnerability is not related to any WordPress plugin or component; it is specific to Intel's Quartus Prime Pro Edition software.

Supply Chain & Package Security

This vulnerability is not associated with NPM, PyPI, Go, or Ruby packages. It is a standalone software vulnerability in Intel's proprietary design software.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

• CVSS Score: 0.0 (Unassigned)
• CVSS Vector: UNKNOWN
• EPSS Score: 0.0% (No active exploitation)
• Threat Level: Low (based on lack of public exploit, low EPSS, and no patch)

The vulnerability is classified as a potential escalation of privilege, but without a CVSS vector or public exploit, the immediate risk is low. However, given the lack of a patch, organizations using Quartus Prime Pro Edition should monitor Intel's security advisories.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability resides in Intel's Quartus® Prime Pro Edition Design Software, a tool used for FPGA design and development. The exact mechanism is not publicly disclosed, but based on the CWE-269 classification, it likely involves improper privilege management, allowing a local attacker to escalate their privileges on the system.

Potential attack vectors:

• Local Exploitation: An attacker with low-privileged access to a system running Quartus Prime Pro Edition could exploit this vulnerability to gain higher privileges (e.g., SYSTEM or root).
• File Permissions: The software may incorrectly set file or registry permissions, allowing a low-privileged user to modify critical files or execute code in a privileged context.
• DLL Hijacking: The software might load dynamic-link libraries (DLLs) from insecure paths, enabling a local attacker to place a malicious DLL and execute code with the software's privileges.

Without a public proof-of-concept or detailed advisory, these are speculative but common patterns for privilege escalation vulnerabilities in design software.

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

No code snippets are available because no patch or vulnerable code has been publicly disclosed. The vulnerability is unpatched, and Intel has not released a security update.

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team

Since no public exploit exists, a red team would need to reverse-engineer the software to identify the vulnerability. The following steps outline a potential approach:

1. Environment Setup:

   • Install Quartus Prime Pro Edition on a Windows or Linux virtual machine.
   • Create a low-privileged user account.
   • Monitor file system and registry changes during installation and runtime using tools like Process Monitor (Windows) or strace (Linux).

2. Vulnerability Discovery:

   • Look for insecure file permissions (e.g., world-writable directories in the installation path).
   • Check for DLL hijacking opportunities by monitoring DLL loads with tools like Process Explorer or ldd.
   • Analyze the software's service or driver components for improper privilege handling.

3. Exploitation:

   • If a DLL hijacking vector is found, craft a malicious DLL that executes code with the software's privileges.
   • If file permission issues exist, overwrite a configuration file or executable that runs with elevated privileges.

Example (Hypothetical):

# Check for world-writable directories in Quartus installation
find /opt/intelFPGA_pro -type d -perm -o+w 2>/dev/null

Blue Team

Blue teams should focus on detection and prevention:

1. Monitor for Unauthorized Software Installations: Track installations of Quartus Prime Pro Edition and ensure only authorized users have access.
2. Audit File Permissions: Regularly check for insecure permissions in the Quartus installation directory.
3. Enable Logging: Enable detailed logging for process creation, file access, and registry changes.
4. Apply Principle of Least Privilege: Ensure users run Quartus with the minimum necessary privileges.

Detection Commands:

# Linux: Check for world-writable files in Quartus directory
find /opt/intelFPGA_pro -type f -perm -o+w 2>/dev/null

# Windows: Check for weak ACLs on Quartus directories
icacls "C:\Program Files\Intel\Quartus" /t

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

No specific IOCs are available due to the lack of public exploit or malware samples. However, the following generic IOCs may be relevant:

• File Hashes: Unknown
• Network Indicators: None (local privilege escalation)
• Registry Keys (Windows): HKLM\SOFTWARE\Intel\Quartus (monitor for unauthorized modifications)
• Process Names: quartus.exe, quartus_map, quartus_fit, quartus_asm, quartus_sta
• Suspicious DLLs: Any DLL loaded from user-writable paths in the Quartus directory

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2025_13668_Quartus_EoP {
    meta:
        description = "Detects potential exploitation of CVE-2025-13668 in Intel Quartus Prime Pro Edition"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-10"
        reference = "CVE-2025-13668"
    strings:
        $s1 = "Quartus" nocase
        $s2 = "escalation of privilege" nocase
        $s3 = "CVE-2025-13668" nocase
    condition:
        any of them
}

Sigma Rule

title: Potential Exploitation of CVE-2025-13668 - Intel Quartus Privilege Escalation
id: 12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012
status: experimental
description: Detects suspicious file modifications or process executions related to Intel Quartus Prime Pro Edition that may indicate privilege escalation.
author: Valters IT
date: 2025-04-10
references:
    - https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-13668
logsource:
    category: process_creation
    product: windows
detection:
    selection:
        Image|endswith:
            - '\quartus.exe'
            - '\quartus_map.exe'
            - '\quartus_fit.exe'
            - '\quartus_asm.exe'
            - '\quartus_sta.exe'
        CommandLine|contains:
            - '--privileged'
            - '--elevate'
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate administrative use of Quartus
level: medium

Suricata Rule

alert tcp $HOME_NET any -> $EXTERNAL_NET any (msg:"CVE-2025-13668 Potential Intel Quartus Privilege Escalation"; flow:to_server,established; content:"Quartus"; nocase; content:"privilege"; nocase; distance:0; within:100; classtype:attempted-admin; sid:1000001; rev:1;)

Remediation & Mitigation

Since no patch is available, the following mitigations are recommended:

1. Restrict Access: Limit installation and use of Quartus Prime Pro Edition to authorized users only.
2. Apply Least Privilege: Run Quartus under a standard user account rather than an administrator account.
3. Monitor for Suspicious Activity: Use the detection rules above to monitor for potential exploitation attempts.
4. Virtualization: Run Quartus in a sandboxed or virtualized environment to contain potential privilege escalation.
5. Vendor Contact: Monitor Intel's security advisories for future patches.

Valters IT
DevSecOps & Cyber Threat Intelligence Expert