NZXT Motherboards - LogoFAIL UEFI Vulnerability FAQ

This FAQ will cover the NZXT N-Series motherboards in regards to the LogoFAIL UEFI Vulnerability attack.

What is the LogoFAIL UEFI Vulnerability attack?

Reported by security group Binarly REsearch in late 2023, LogoFAIL is a newly discovered set of security vulnerabilities affecting different image parsing libraries used by the system firmware during the boot process.  This does not affect a single vendor, but rather nearly the entire ecosystem of UEFI based motherboards at risk.

• Binarly.io - Finding LogoFAIL:  The Dangers of Image Parsing During System Boot
• Binarly.io - The Far Reaching Consequences of LogoFAIL

This type of vulnerability allows an attacker to store malicious logo images either on the EFI System Partition (ESP) or inside an unsigned section of a firmware update.  When these images are parsed during boot, the vulnerability can be triggered and allow an attacker control payload to be executed and hijack the execution flow to bypass security features such as Secure Boot or hardware-based verified boot mechanisms.

In simpler terms, this allows an attacker to load malicious code on your machine before the operating system (Windows, Linux, etc.) have a chance to start and can persist even if the system is wiped and reinstalled.  For more information, please see the articles linked above.

What motherboards are affected by LogoFAIL?

As this is an issue with the Universal Extensible Firmware Interface specification as a whole, affecting the entire ecosystem of motherboards this means that effectively all motherboards utilizing UEFI are affected.  Some hardware vendors do include additional checks or patches that help mitigate or prevent this type of attack.

Select NZXT motherboards have received UEFI/BIOS updates to mitigate this type of attack and help close this vulnerability.  For a breakdown of the UEFI versions that are hardened against this type of attack, please see the chart below:

To update your NZXT N Series motherboard's UEFI/BIOS, please see the guide linked below:

NZXT Support - Updating your NZXT Motherboard BIOS

For non-NZXT motherboards, please refer to the motherboard manufacturer's website.

How do I protect myself against LogoFAIL?

Binarly REsearch identified three primary attack vectors that would allow a malicious actor to load the LogoFAIL exploit onto a machine.  Of the three types of attacks, only two can be executed without direct access to the hardware on the PC.

• Loading an image to the EFI System Partition (ESP) that is loaded by the motherboard during the boot process.
• Updating the UEFI BIOS using a malicious image or updating program.

To protect yourself against this type of attack, please do not use programs designed to replace the boot logo on your PC.  Additionally, only update your UEFI using updates provided directly from the manufacturer of your motherboard.  All NZXT UEFI/BIOS updates can be found on the product page for the motherboard directly.

It is recommended to update your UEFI/BIOS once an update is available for your particular motherboard.  A chart of available updates and a guide for updating your BIOS can be found in the section above.

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