CVE-2016-6680
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 · uneditedCORE/HDD/src/wlan_hdd_wext.c in the Qualcomm Wi-Fi driver in Android before 2016-10-05 on Nexus 5X and Android One devices allows attackers to obtain sensitive information via a crafted application that makes an iw_set_priv ioctl call, aka Android internal bug 29982678 and Qualcomm internal bug CR 1048052.
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 confidenceInformation disclosure vulnerability in the Qualcomm Wi-Fi driver's iw_set_priv ioctl handler (wlan_hdd_wext.c). A crafted Android application can make a specially crafted iw_set_priv ioctl call to read sensitive kernel memory contents beyond intended boundaries, exposing potentially privileged or private data.
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<= 7.0CVSS 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
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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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Check Android OS versionGo to Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via adb shellAffected if Version is 7.0 (Nougat) or earlier. This vulnerability affects Android 7.0 and below.
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Check Android security patch levelGo to Settings > About Phone > Security patch level, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' via adb shellAffected if Patch level is earlier than 2016-10-05. The fix was released in the October 5, 2016 security update.
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Verify device model is in affected vendor listCheck if the device is a Nexus 5X or Android One device using 'getprop ro.product.model' via adb shell, or consult vendor documentation for your specific deviceAffected if Device is a Nexus 5X or Android One device and the October 2016 security update has not been applied.
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Check kernel version for Qualcomm Wi-Fi driverRun 'uname -r' or 'cat /proc/version' via adb shell to obtain kernel version, then inspect wlan_hdd_wext.c if accessibleAffected if Kernel contains the vulnerable iw_set_priv ioctl handler in wlan_hdd_wext.c without the bounds validation patch.
A device is affected if it runs Android 7.0 or earlier, has a security patch level before October 5, 2016, and contains the vulnerable Qualcomm Wi-Fi driver with the iw_set_priv ioctl handler.
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 Android security update released 2016-10-05 or later for affected Nexus 5X and Android One devices. The patch requires proper bounds validation in the ioctl handler to prevent out-of-bounds memory reads.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,480.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-6680 — 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-2016-6680 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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- 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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