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AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2017-13203

CRITICAL · 9.1 CVSS v3.0 Published 2018-01-12
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
An information disclosure vulnerability in the Android media framework (libavc). Product: Android. Versions: 7.0, 7.1.1, 7.1.2, 8.0, 8.1. Android ID: A-63122634.

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 confidence

An information disclosure vulnerability in Android's media framework library (libavc). The flaw allows unauthorized access to sensitive information through the media decoding component, potentially exposing memory contents or system data to an attacker.

MitigationApply Android security patches for the affected versions (7.0, 7.1.1, 7.1.2, 8.0, 8.1) to update the libavc library. Users should ensure their devices receive the latest system updates containing the A-63122634 patch.

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:= 6.0= 6.0.1= 7.0= 7.1.1= 7.1.2= 8.0= 8.1

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
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/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 > Android version, or use 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB
    Affected if Version equals 6.0, 6.0.1, 7.0, 7.1.1, 7.1.2, 8.0, or 8.1
  2. Verify security patch level
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Security patch level, or use 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' via ADB
    Affected if Security patch level is earlier than the A-63122634 patch (typically the January 2018 Android Security Bulletin or earlier for affected versions)
  3. Confirm libavc library presence
    Check if /system/lib64/libavc.so or /system/lib/libavc.so exists on the device via ADB with 'ls -la /system/lib*/libavc.so'
    Affected if The libavc library file exists on the device (vulnerable library is present)
  4. Identify if media decoding is in use
    Monitor process activity during media playback using 'dumpsys media.player' or check if apps using media decoding (video players, cameras) are active
    Affected if Media decoding components are actively being used on an affected Android version

User is affected if running Android 6.0 through 8.1 AND the libavc library is present AND the device security patch level does not include the A-63122634 fix.

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 Android security patches for the affected versions (7.0, 7.1.1, 7.1.2, 8.0, 8.1) to update the libavc library. Users should ensure their devices receive the latest system updates containing the A-63122634 patch.

Recommended fix High confidence

Android 8.1 or later with 2018-01-01 security patch level; alternatively Android 7.0/7.1.x with manufacturer-supplied January 2018 security update

  1. Check the current Android version on the device: Settings > About Phone > Android version
  2. Upgrade to the latest available Android security patch level. For CVE-2017-13203, this was addressed in the January 2018 Android Security Patch Level (2018-01-01)
  3. If the device is on Android 7.0 or 7.1.1/7.1.2, apply the 2018-01-01 security update or later from the device manufacturer
  4. For Android 6.0/6.0.1 devices no longer receiving official security updates, consider upgrading to a device that receives current security patches, or if the device supports it, check if a custom ROM with security updates is available
  5. After upgrading, verify the patch level in Settings > About Phone > Security patch level reflects the January 2018 update or later
Caveat Upgrading Android major versions may cause app incompatibility; some legacy apps may not function on newer Android versions

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-2017-13203 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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