Linux KernelOperating system · Linux
CVE-2016-6789
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 · uneditedAn elevation of privilege vulnerability in the NVIDIA libomx library (libnvomx) could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of a privileged process. This issue is rated as High because it could be used to gain local access to elevated capabilities, which are not normally accessible to a third-party application. Product: Android. Versions: Kernel-3.18. Android ID: A-31251973. References: N-CVE-2016-6789.
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 vulnerability in the NVIDIA libomx library (libnvomx) allows a local malicious application to escalate privileges and execute arbitrary code within the context of a privileged process. This is a classic privilege escalation flaw where the library fails to properly validate or sanitize inputs from untrusted applications, allowing a third-party app to gain elevated capabilities normally restricted to system processes.
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
Linux KernelOperating system
= 3.18CVSS 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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Identify if the device uses NVIDIA hardwareCheck the device hardware information via 'getprop ro.product.board' or 'cat /proc/cpuinfo' to see if the processor/board is NVIDIA-based (Tegra, etc.)Affected if The device contains NVIDIA Tegra hardware components
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Check the kernel versionRun 'uname -r' or 'cat /proc/version' to obtain the running kernel versionAffected if The kernel version is exactly 3.18
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Verify the vulnerable library is presentCheck for the existence of libnvomx or libomx shared library in /vendor/lib or /system/lib directory using 'find / -name "libnvomx*" 2>/dev/null'Affected if The libnvomx library is present on the device
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Check the Android security patch levelRun 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' to see the installed security patch dateAffected if The security patch level is earlier than the month containing the fix for Android ID A-31251973
A device is affected if it is NVIDIA-based, runs kernel 3.18, contains the libnvomx library, and has a security patch level predating the fix for Android ID A-31251973
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 security patch (distributed via OEM/carrier OTA updates). This is a kernel-level component vulnerability requiring firmware update; users should ensure their Android devices receive the monthly security patch level that includes the fix for Android ID A-31251973.
Fix this in Linux Kernel
Scoped from the published advisory
- 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-2016-6789 — 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-2016-6789 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
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