dbcve.org
Mdm9206 FirmwareOperating system · Qualcomm

CVE-2016-10444

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2018-04-18
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
In Android before 2018-04-05 or earlier security patch level on Qualcomm Snapdragon Automobile, Snapdragon Mobile, and Snapdragon Wear MDM9206, SD 210/SD 212/SD 205, SD 425, SD 430, SD 450, SD 625, SD 820, SD 820A, and SD 835, SMMU Access Control Policy was updated to block HLOS from accessing BLSP and BAM resources.

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

In multiple Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets (MDM9206, SD 210/212/205, SD 425, SD 430, SD 450, SD 625, SD 820, SD 820A, SD 835), the SMMU (System Memory Management Unit) Access Control Policy originally allowed the High-Level Operating System (HLOS) to access BLSP (BAM Low Speed Peripheral) and BAM (Bus Access Manager) hardware resources. This improper access control could allow an attacker to potentially access or manipulate these peripheral resources from the HLOS context.

MitigationApply the Android security patch level from April 2018 or later, which includes the SMMU policy update blocking HLOS access to BLSP and BAM resources. Contact the device OEM for firmware updates if the device cannot be updated.

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
Mdm9206 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Sd 210 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Sd 212 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Sd 205 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Sd 425 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Sd 430 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Sd 450 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Sd 625 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions

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. Identify the chipset model
    Check the device specifications or use commands like 'cat /proc/cpuinfo' on Android, or check the device manager on other OSes. Look for Qualcomm Snapdragon model numbers: MDM9206, SD 210, SD 212, SD 205, SD 425, SD 430, SD 450, or SD 625.
    Affected if The device uses any of the listed affected chipsets (MDM9206, SD 210/212/205, SD 425, SD 430, SD 450, SD 625)
  2. Determine the Android security patch level
    On Android, go to Settings > About Phone > Build Number, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' via ADB to retrieve the security patch level date.
    Affected if The security patch level is earlier than April 2018 (the patch that mitigates this issue)
  3. Verify if SMMU access control policy is enforced
    This requires access to firmware or kernel debugging tools. Check if the SMMU access control policy has been updated to block HLOS access to BLSP and BAM resources. This is typically only verifiable through OEM-provided firmware analysis or by contacting the device manufacturer.
    Affected if The SMMU policy still allows HLOS access to BLSP and BAM peripheral resources (firmware not patched)

A device is affected if it uses one of the affected Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets (MDM9206, SD 210/212/205, SD 425, SD 430, SD 450, SD 625) AND has a security patch level earlier than April 2018, indicating the SMMU access control policy has not been updated to block HLOS access to BLSP and BAM hardware resources.

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 level from April 2018 or later, which includes the SMMU policy update blocking HLOS access to BLSP and BAM resources. Contact the device OEM for firmware updates if the device cannot be updated.

Recommended fix High confidence

Android devices with 2018-04-05 security patch level or later; contact device OEMs for specific firmware updates for MDM9206, SD 210, SD 212, SD 205, SD 425, SD 430, SD 450, SD 625, SD 820, SD 820A, and SD 835

  1. Check your device's current Android security patch level in Settings > About Phone > Security patch level
  2. If the patch level is earlier than April 5, 2018, contact your device manufacturer or carrier for the available security update
  3. Apply the latest available Android security update for your device, which should include the SMMU Access Control Policy fix
  4. Verify the security patch level has been updated to April 2018 or later after the update
Caveat Security updates are generally backward-compatible; however, some older devices may not receive the update if they are past support life cycle

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

Fix this in Mdm9206 Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
4.0 hours of engineering $750
Get help mitigating

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 locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-10444 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2016-10444 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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.

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