CVE-2016-10230
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 · uneditedA remote code execution vulnerability in the Qualcomm crypto driver. Product: Android. Versions: Android kernel. Android ID: A-34389927. References: QC-CR#1091408.
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 remote code execution vulnerability exists in the Qualcomm crypto driver within the Android kernel. The flaw allows attackers to execute arbitrary code in the kernel context, potentially gaining full control of the device. The vulnerability is network-exploitable given its CVSS 9.8 critical rating.
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 the Android versionGo to Settings > About Phone > Android version (or Settings > System > About Phone > Android version on newer devices)Affected if The device is running any version of Android, as all versions are affected according to the CVE description
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Check the security patch levelGo to Settings > About Phone > Security patch level (or Settings > System > Security > Security patch level) to see the date of the installed security updatesAffected if The security patch level is earlier than the patch date for CVE-2016-10230 (March 2017) - if the field shows a date before March 2017 or displays as 'unknown', the device may be vulnerable
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Identify the kernel versionUse a terminal app or ADB to run 'uname -r' or check Settings > About Phone > Kernel versionAffected if The kernel version cannot confirm safety on its own - the presence of a kernel version alone does not indicate the vulnerability is present or absent; patch level is more definitive
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Verify if the Qualcomm crypto driver is presentCheck for the presence of crypto-related kernel modules or drivers - in a terminal or ADB, examine /proc/modules or look for 'qcedev' or 'qcrypto' driver entries using 'lsmod' or checking /sys/module/Affected if The crypto driver module is loaded on the device - exploitation requires this driver to be active; however, many devices require this driver for encryption functionality, so its presence alone does not indicate exploitation, only potential exposure
A device is likely affected if it runs any Android version and has a security patch level dated before the March 2017 Qualcomm/Android security update that addressed this CVE.
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 appropriate Qualcomm and Android security patches that address this vulnerability in the crypto driver. Until patched, reduce attack surface by avoiding untrusted network connections and applications.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing12.0 h
- Review / QA6.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $8,192.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-10230 — 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-2016-10230 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
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