Backdoor in NVIDIA AI Systems: Critical 9.8 Severity Flaws Grant Total Control

Key Findings

• NVIDIA has issued a critical security update for its Isaac Launchable software, patching three vulnerabilities with a CVSS score of 9.8.

• The most severe flaw, CVE-2025-33222, involves hard-coded credentials that allow attackers to bypass authentication and gain complete control of affected systems.

• The remaining two vulnerabilities, CVE-2025-33223 and CVE-2025-33224, stem from improper privilege management, enabling attackers to execute code with elevated permissions.

• The flaws can lead to remote code execution, escalation of privileges, denial of service, information disclosure, and data tampering.

• NVIDIA is urging all users to upgrade to the latest version 1.1 of Isaac Launchable to protect their systems from these critical security risks.

Background

NVIDIA's Isaac Launchable is a software suite used for the development and deployment of robotic and AI systems. The product is widely used in industries such as manufacturing, healthcare, and transportation, where it plays a crucial role in powering advanced automation and autonomous technologies.

Hard-Coded Credential Vulnerability (CVE-2025-33222)

The most severe flaw, CVE-2025-33222, is a classic but devastating security oversight: the presence of hard-coded credentials in the Isaac Launchable software. This vulnerability allows an attacker to bypass authentication entirely, granting them full control of the affected system.

According to NVIDIA's advisory, "NVIDIA Isaac Launchable contains a vulnerability where an attacker could exploit a hard-coded credential issue." A successful exploit of this flaw could lead to "code execution, escalation of privileges, denial of service, and data tampering."

Privilege Escalation Vulnerabilities (CVE-2025-33223 and CVE-2025-33224)

The remaining two vulnerabilities, CVE-2025-33223 and CVE-2025-33224, stem from improper privilege management within the Isaac Launchable software. These flaws allow an attacker to trigger executions with higher permissions than they should possess.

The advisory warns that "an attacker could cause an execution with unnecessary privileges." Like the hard-coded credential flaw, these issues can lead to a complete system compromise, including "code execution, escalation of privileges, denial of service, information disclosure and data tampering."

Patching and Mitigation

Given the critical severity of these vulnerabilities, NVIDIA is urging all users to upgrade to the latest version 1.1 of Isaac Launchable immediately. Users running previous versions are vulnerable and should apply the patch without delay to protect their systems from these potentially devastating attacks.

Sources

• https://securityonline.info/the-hard-coded-backdoor-critical-9-8-severity-nvidia-flaws-grant-total-control-of-ai-systems/

• https://www.thehackerwire.com/critical-flaw-in-nvidia-isaac-launchable-hard-coded-credentials-expose-ai-robotics-systems-to-full-compromise-cve-2025-33222/

• https://x.com/the_yellow_fall/status/2003641619065766000