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AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2016-0837

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2016-04-18
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
MPEG4Extractor.cpp in libstagefright in mediaserver in Android 4.x before 4.4.4, 5.0.x before 5.0.2, 5.1.x before 5.1.1, and 6.x before 2016-04-01 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (out-of-bounds read and memory corruption) via a crafted media file, aka internal bug 27208621.

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

Out-of-bounds read vulnerability in libstagefright's MPEG4Extractor when parsing crafted MP4 media files, leading to memory corruption that can be exploited for remote code execution or denial of service.

MitigationApply the Android security patch released 2016-04-01 or later, which contains the fix for this libstagefright vulnerability in the mediaserver component.

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:= 4.0= 4.0.1= 4.0.2= 4.0.3= 4.0.4= 4.1= 4.1.2= 4.2= 4.2.1= 4.2.2= 4.3= 4.3.1

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
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 checks

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

  1. Check Android OS version
    Go to Settings > About Phone (or About Device) > Android version, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB shell
    Affected if The version displayed is 4.0, 4.0.1, 4.0.2, 4.0.3, 4.0.4, 4.1, 4.1.2, 4.2, 4.2.1, 4.2.2, 4.3, or 4.3.1 (any of the listed affected versions)
  2. Verify mediaserver component is present
    Run 'getprop ro.mediaserver.version' via ADB shell, or check for /system/lib/libstagefright.so file existence
    Affected if The mediaserver component exists and the vulnerable libstagefright library is present on the device (required for the flaw to apply)
  3. Confirm exposure to untrusted media files
    Review installed apps that can receive or process MP4 media files (messaging apps, browsers, media players), or check if the device processes media from external sources without user verification
    Affected if The device can receive or automatically process MP4 files from untrusted sources (email attachments, downloads, MMS) - this is the attack vector for the vulnerability

A device is affected if it runs any Android version from 4.0 through 4.3.1 AND contains the mediaserver component with libstagefright, and can process MP4 files from untrusted sources.

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 released 2016-04-01 or later, which contains the fix for this libstagefright vulnerability in the mediaserver component.

Recommended fix High confidence

Android 4.4.4 (KitKat) or later stable release

  1. Identify the current Android version on the device (Settings > About Phone > Android version)
  2. Backup all important data on the device
  3. Check if the device manufacturer provides an official update to Android 4.4.4 or higher
  4. If official OTA update is available, download and install it via Settings > About Phone > System Updates
  5. If no official update is available from the manufacturer, consider flashing a custom ROM that supports Android 4.4.4 or later (note: this voids warranty and requires technical expertise)
  6. After upgrade, verify the Android version reflects 4.4.4 or higher
Caveat Upgrading from Android 4.0.x to 4.4.4 may remove compatibility with some legacy apps; some pre-4.4 apps may not function properly

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

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,500
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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-2016-0837 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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