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AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2015-8072

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2015-11-03
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
mediaserver in Android 4.4 through 5.x before 5.1.1 LMY48X and 6.0 before 2015-11-01 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via a crafted media file, aka internal bug 23881715, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-6608 and CVE-2015-8073.

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 confidence

Memory corruption vulnerability in Android's mediaserver component allows remote code execution or denial of service via specially crafted media files. Affects Android 4.4 through 5.x before 5.1.1 LMY48X and Android 6.0 before the November 2015 security patch.

MitigationApply the Android security patch LMY48X (5.1.1) or the November 2015 patch for Android 6.0. Until patched, avoid opening untrusted media files from unknown sources.

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
AndroidOperating system
Affected:= 4.4= 5.1

CVSS 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
Network
Complexity
Low
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify the Android OS version
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB shell
    Affected if The version is 4.4 or 5.1.x (before 5.1.1) - these are within the affected range
  2. Check the security patch level
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Android security patch level, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' via ADB shell
    Affected if On Android 6.0, if the patch level is earlier than November 2015, the device is vulnerable
  3. Verify mediaserver component is present
    Run 'ps | grep mediaserver' via ADB shell to confirm the mediaserver process is running
    Affected if The mediaserver process is running by default on Android and processes media files, which is required for exploitation
  4. Confirm the device is not receiving updates
    Check if system updates are available in Settings > About Phone > System Updates, or verify the build number (e.g., LMY48X for the fixed 5.1.1 build)
    Affected if The device is on an affected version and build (such as any 4.4 build, 5.1 before LMY48X, or 6.0 before November 2015) without the security patch

A device is affected if it runs Android 4.4, Android 5.1 before build LMY48X (5.1.1), or Android 6.0 before the November 2015 security patch, and the mediaserver component is active to process media files.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the Android security patch LMY48X (5.1.1) or the November 2015 patch for Android 6.0. Until patched, avoid opening untrusted media files from unknown sources.

Recommended fix High confidence

Android 5.1.1 LMY48X or later (for 5.x), Android 5.1.1 LMY48X or later (for 4.4), or November 2015 security patch level for Android 6.0

  1. Check current Android version by navigating to Settings > About Phone > Android version
  2. For Android 5.x users: Upgrade to Android 5.1.1 LMY48X or later to receive the security patch
  3. For Android 4.4 users: Upgrade to Android 5.1.1 LMY48X or later as 4.4 will not receive this specific patch
  4. For Android 6.0 users: Upgrade to the November 2015 security patch level (2015-11-01 or later)
  5. If OTA updates are not available, check with device manufacturer for available security updates
  6. As a temporary mitigation, avoid opening untrusted media files from unknown sources
Caveat Upgrading Android versions may cause compatibility issues with older apps or device features; some devices may not receive the update and require manufacturer support

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
16.0 hours of engineering $2,720
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2015-8072 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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