CVE-2015-6640
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 · uneditedThe prctl_set_vma_anon_name function in kernel/sys.c in Android before 5.1.1 LMY49F and 6.0 before 2016-01-01 does not ensure that only one vma is accessed in a certain update action, which allows attackers to gain privileges or cause a denial of service (vma list corruption) via a crafted application, aka internal bug 20017123.
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 confidenceA race condition exists in the prctl_set_vma_anon_name function in the Android kernel (kernel/sys.c) where the function fails to ensure only one VMA (virtual memory area) is accessed during certain update operations. This allows an attacker to trigger vma list corruption through a crafted application, potentially achieving privilege escalation or causing a denial of service.
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= 4.4.4= 5.0= 5.1.1= 6.0CVSS 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
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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.
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Check Android OS versionGo to Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB shellAffected if Version is 4.4.4, 5.0, 5.1.1, or 6.0 (these are the affected versions)
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Check kernel versionRun 'cat /proc/version' via ADB shell or check Kernel version in Settings > About Phone > Kernel versionAffected if Kernel is older than the January 2016 Android 6.0 security patch or LMY49F (5.1.1) patch level
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Verify security patch levelRun 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' via ADB shellAffected if The patch level is empty, earlier than 2016-01-01 for Android 6.0, or earlier than LMY49F for Android 5.1.1
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Confirm vulnerable kernel function existsCheck if /proc/kallsyms contains 'prctl_set_vma_anon_name' by running 'cat /proc/kallsyms | grep prctl_set_vma_anon_name' via ADB shellAffected if The function symbol exists in the kernel (indicates the vulnerable code path is present)
The device is affected if it runs Android 4.4.4, 5.0, 5.1.1, or 6.0 and has a kernel version or security patch level predating the January 2016 Android update (for 6.0) or LMY49F (for 5.1.1).
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 dataApply the Android security updates for LMY49F (5.1.1) or the January 2016 update for Android 6.0, which contain the kernel patch addressing the race condition in prctl_set_vma_anon_name.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,176.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2015-6640 — 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-2015-6640 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
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- 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
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