CVE-2017-18056
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 · uneditedIn Android for MSM, Firefox OS for MSM, QRD Android, with all Android releases from CAF using the Linux kernel, improper input validation for vdev_id in wma_unified_bcntx_status_event_handler() which is received from firmware leads to potential out of bounds memory read.
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 confidenceImproper input validation for vdev_id in wma_unified_bcntx_status_event_handler() allows a malicious firmware message to trigger an out-of-bounds memory read in the wireless media driver, potentially exposing sensitive kernel memory contents.
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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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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Verify Android versionCheck the Android OS version in Settings > About Phone > Android versionAffected if Any version is affected since all Android versions are vulnerable per the CVE scope
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Identify the kernel wireless driverCheck if the wma (wireless media adapter) driver is present by examining /proc/modules or using 'lsmod' command to list loaded kernel modulesAffected if The wma driver module is loaded, indicating the vulnerable code path exists in memory
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Confirm Qualcomm wireless subsystemCheck if the device uses a Qualcomm wireless chipset by reviewing 'getprop ro.hardware' or checking kernel boot logs for 'wlan' or 'wma' related entriesAffected if The device runs a Qualcomm-based wireless stack containing the vulnerable wma_unified_bcntx_status_event_handler function
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Check for the vulnerable function in kernelInspect /proc/kallsyms or use 'nm' on the wma driver module to verify the presence of wma_unified_bcntx_status_event_handler symbolAffected if The function symbol is present and the driver has not been patched to add proper vdev_id bounds checking
The device is affected if it runs any Android version with a Qualcomm wireless driver containing the wma_unified_bcntx_status_event_handler function, as all such configurations contain the improper input validation flaw for vdev_id.
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 vendor firmware/security patches from Qualcomm/CAF for Android; this requires updating the device to a patched Android release containing the corrected wma driver.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,888.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-18056 — 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-2017-18056 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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