CVE-2015-9217
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 Android before 2018-04-05 or earlier security patch level on Qualcomm Snapdragon Mobile and Snapdragon Wear MSM8909W, SD 210/SD 212/SD 205, SD 400, SD 410/12, SD 425, SD 427, SD 430, SD 435, SD 450, SD 625, SD 650/52, SD 800, SD 808, SD 810, SD 820, SD 835, SD 845, SDM630, SDM636, SDM660, and Snapdragon_High_Med_2016, certain malformed HVEC clips could cause an assertion to fail.
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 confidenceIn multiple Qualcomm Snapdragon processors (mobile and wearable), certain malformed HEVC (H.265) video clips could trigger an assertion failure during video decoding, potentially causing denial of service or possible code execution. This vulnerability exists in the video codec processing component of the Snapdragon firmware.
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 versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/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.
-
Identify the Qualcomm Snapdragon processor modelCheck device specifications, /proc/cpuinfo, or system information settings to determine the exact Snapdragon chipsetAffected if The processor model matches Msm8909w, Sd 210, Sd 212, Sd 205, Sd 400, Sd 410, Sd 412, or Sd 425
-
Confirm HEVC/H.265 video decoding capabilityCheck if the device supports HEVC (H.265) video playback in media player settings, video app permissions, or by attempting to play an HEVC-encoded test fileAffected if HEVC/H.265 decoding is available and the processor is in the affected list
-
Check for firmware version informationAccess Qualcomm Snapdragon firmware version through device engineering menus, diagnostic tools, or manufacturer documentationAffected if Firmware version cannot be determined or is present on an affected processor (note: all versions of listed processors are affected)
-
Verify Android security patch levelCheck Android system settings under About Phone > Security Patch Level or via Settings > System > Security > Security updateAffected if Security patch level is on or before 2018-04-05 (this CVE was addressed in patches after this date)
A device is affected if it uses any of the listed Snapdragon processors (Msm8909w, Sd 210, Sd 212, Sd 205, Sd 400, Sd 410, Sd 412, Sd 425), has HEVC video decoding enabled, and has not received the vendor security patch (security patch level after 2018-04-05).
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 vendor-supplied security patch (Android security patch level after 2018-04-05) to affected devices. This is a firmware-level fix that must come through system updates from the device manufacturer or Qualcomm.
- Consultation8.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing8.0 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 $6,784.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2015-9217 — 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-2015-9217 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