CVE-2015-8505
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 · uneditedmediaserver in Android before 5.1.1 LMY48Z allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via a crafted media file, aka internal bug 17769851, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-6616, CVE-2015-8506, and CVE-2015-8507.
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 confidenceMemory corruption vulnerability in Android's mediaserver component allows remote attackers to achieve arbitrary code execution via a crafted malicious media file. This is a critical severity flaw (CVSS 9.3) affecting Android versions prior to 5.1.1 LMY48Z, stemming from improper handling of media file parsing that leads to heap corruption.
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<= 5.1CVSS 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
- M
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:N/AC:M/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check Android OS versionNavigate to Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB shellAffected if Version displays 5.1 or lower (e.g., 5.0, 4.4, 4.3, etc.)
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Check security patch levelNavigate to Settings > About Phone > Security patch level, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' via ADB shellAffected if Patch level is empty, blank, or earlier than LMY48Z (2015-07-01 or earlier)
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Verify mediaserver component is presentRun 'ps | grep mediaserver' via ADB shell to confirm the mediaserver process is runningAffected if mediaserver process is active (this is default on affected Android versions)
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Confirm no LMY48Z or later update appliedRun 'getprop ro.build.version.incremental' via ADB shell to check the build numberAffected if Build number does not contain LMY48Z or later (e.g., LMY48Z, LMY49F, LMY49G, LMY50F, etc.)
A device is affected if it runs Android 5.1 or earlier AND has a security patch level earlier than LMY48Z, with the mediaserver process active.
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.
dbcve · scopedApply Android OS security patch LMY48Z or later to affected devices. There is no application-level code fix—this is a system-level mediaserver vulnerability requiring OS-level remediation.
Android 5.1.1 LMY48Z (or any later stable release)
- Check current Android version by navigating to Settings > About Phone > Build Number
- Backup all important data, contacts, photos, and applications to a computer or cloud storage
- Verify that the device is connected to Wi-Fi and has sufficient battery (at least 50%)
- Check for system updates by navigating to Settings > About Phone > System Updates or Settings > System > Software Update
- If Android 5.1.1 LMY48Z or later is available, download and install the update
- After installation, verify the fix by confirming the build number shows LMY48Z or later in Settings > About Phone > Build Number
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,200.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2015-8505 — 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-2015-8505 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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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