CVE-2014-7953
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedRace condition in the bindBackupAgent method in the ActivityManagerService in Android 4.4.4 allows local users with adb shell access to execute arbitrary code or any valid package as system by running "pm install" with the target apk, and simultaneously running a crafted script to process logcat's output looking for a dexopt line, which once found should execute bindBackupAgent with the uid member of the ApplicationInfo parameter set to 1000.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceRace condition in Android 4.4.4's ActivityManagerService.bindBackupAgent method allows local attackers with adb shell access to escalate privileges to system (uid 1000) by exploiting timing between 'pm install' and monitoring logcat for dexopt lines to trigger bindBackupAgent with a crafted ApplicationInfo parameter.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data= 4.4.4CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- High
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Check Android OS versionRun 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via adb shell or check in Settings > About Phone > Android versionAffected if Version is 4.4.4 exactly (other versions are not affected)
-
Verify adb debugging is enabledCheck Settings > Developer options > Android debugging (USB debugging), or run 'getprop persist.sys.usb.config' to see if adb is activeAffected if adb is enabled and accessible - this is required for the attack vector
-
Confirm adb shell access is possibleConnect device and run 'adb shell' - if you get a shell prompt, the attack surface existsAffected if adb shell access is available to local attackers - the race condition requires this access to execute the exploit
A device is affected only if it is running Android 4.4.4 AND has adb debugging enabled, allowing local shell access to trigger the bindBackupAgent race condition.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataAndroid 4.4.4 is end-of-life and should be upgraded to a supported version; if upgrade is impossible, restrict or disable adb access to prevent local privilege escalation.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,600.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2014-7953 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2014-7953 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data