CVE-2015-9060
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 · uneditedIn all Qualcomm products with Android releases from CAF using the Linux kernel, a pointer is not properly validated in a QTEE system call.
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 · moderate confidenceA pointer validation vulnerability exists in the QTEE (Qualcomm Trusted Execution Environment) system call handler within the Linux kernel for Qualcomm Android devices using CAF (Code Aurora Forum) releases. The lack of proper pointer validation before use allows memory corruption, potentially enabling privilege escalation or arbitrary code execution in the kernel context.
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 dataall versionsCVSS 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
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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.
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Identify device chipset vendorCheck /proc/cpuinfo or use 'getprop ro.hardware' or 'cat /sys/devices/soc0/hw_platform' to determine if the device uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsetAffected if Device does not use a Qualcomm chipset - the vulnerability is specific to Qualcomm processors
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Check if kernel is built from CAF sourcesInspect /proc/version or use 'uname -a' to look for 'CAF', 'Code Aurora', or 'qualcomm' in the kernel build stringAffected if Kernel build string does not contain CAF/Qualcomm markers - the vulnerability exists in CAF kernel sources
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Verify QTEE subsystem presenceCheck for /sys/kernel/debug/tz_* or /dev/qseecom device nodes, or look for 'qseecom' or 'tz' in kernel module listings via 'lsmod'Affected if QTEE/TZ (Trusted Execution Environment) subsystem is not present on the device - the vulnerable code path is not reachable
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Confirm kernel version against vendor advisoriesCompare installed kernel version (uname -r) against the device vendor's security bulletin for CVE-2015-9060 - contact the device manufacturer for specific version informationAffected if Vendor has not released a patch for this CVE and the kernel contains the unpatched QTEE syscall handler code
The device is affected if it is a Qualcomm Android device using a CAF-built kernel with an active QTEE subsystem, and the vendor has not issued a specific patch for CVE-2015-9060.
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 Qualcomm/CAF vendor patch for this vulnerability; until then, minimize exposure by restricting network access and untrusted app installation. This is a kernel-level issue requiring firmware or kernel update from the device vendor.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing10.0 h
- Review / QA6.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2015-9060 — 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-2015-9060 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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