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AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2017-9706

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-10-10
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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 for MSM, Firefox OS for MSM, QRD Android, with all Android releases from CAF using the Linux kernel, an array out-of-bounds access can potentially occur in a display driver.

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

This is an array out-of-bounds access vulnerability in a display driver within the Android kernel for MSM (Mobile Station Modem) platforms, including Firefox OS for MSM and QRD Android. The vulnerability allows memory corruption that could potentially lead to local privilege escalation or denial of service. It affects all Android releases from Code Aurora Forum (CAF) using the Linux kernel.

MitigationApply the vendor security patch for CVE-2017-9706 through standard Android system updates; this is a kernel-level vulnerability requiring vendor-provided driver updates rather than application-level mitigation.

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:= 8.0

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
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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Verify Android version is 8.0
    Check the Android OS version in system settings under 'About phone' or use 'getprop ro.build.version.release' command via ADB
    Affected if The Android version displayed is exactly 8.0 (oreo)
  2. Confirm device uses MSM chipset platform
    Check device hardware information via 'getprop ro.hardware' or 'getprop ro.board.platform' command via ADB, or check /proc/cpuinfo for MSM identifiers
    Affected if The device hardware platform is MSM (Mobile Station Modem) based chipset
  3. Identify display driver component
    Check loaded kernel modules via 'lsmod' or view kernel config in /proc/config.gz for display driver related to MSM (commonly 'mdss' or 'dsi' display driver modules)
    Affected if An MSM-based display driver module (mdss, dsi panel driver) is loaded in the kernel
  4. Check if display driver is actively in use
    Verify display driver is enabled by checking /sys/class/graphics/fb0 or reviewing dmesg output for 'mdss' or 'display' driver initialization messages via 'dmesg | grep -i mdss'
    Affected if The MSM display driver (mdss) is initialized and actively handling display operations

A device is affected if it runs Android 8.0 on an MSM hardware platform with an active MSM display driver module loaded in the kernel, as the array out-of-bounds flaw exists specifically in that display driver component.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the vendor security patch for CVE-2017-9706 through standard Android system updates; this is a kernel-level vulnerability requiring vendor-provided driver updates rather than application-level mitigation.

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation6.0 h
  • Implementation20.0 h
  • Testing10.0 h
  • Review / QA6.0 h
42.0 hours of engineering $7,380
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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-2017-9706 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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