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Mdm9206 FirmwareOperating system · Qualcomm

CVE-2018-11996

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2018-11-28
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
When a malformed command is sent to the device programmer, an out-of-bounds access can occur in Snapdragon Automobile, Snapdragon Mobile and Snapdragon Wear in versions MDM9206, MDM9607, MDM9650, MDM9655, MSM8909W, MSM8996AU, SD 210/SD 212/SD 205, SD 600, SD 820, SD 820A, SD 835, SDA660, SDX20, SDX24.

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

An out-of-bounds memory access vulnerability exists in the device programmer component of Qualcomm Snapdragon chips. When a malformed command is sent to the device programmer, it triggers an out-of-bounds read/write operation, potentially allowing memory corruption or information disclosure. This affects multiple Snapdragon mobile, automotive, and wearable chip variants.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied firmware updates from Qualcomm and device OEMs. Since this is a hardware/firmware-level flaw in the device programmer, no configuration-based workarounds are available; affected devices must receive patched firmware through standard update mechanisms.

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
Mdm9206 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9607 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9650 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9655 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Msm8909w FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Msm8996au FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Sd 210 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Sd 212 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions

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. Identify the Qualcomm chip model
    Check the device specifications, system-on-chip (SoC) information, or /proc/cpuinfo on Linux-based devices to determine the exact Snapdragon or Qualcomm modem chip variant installed
    Affected if The chip model matches Mdm9206, Mdm9607, Mdm9650, Mdm9655, Msm8909w, Msm8996au, Sd 210, or Sd 212
  2. Confirm firmware version
    Query the firmware version through device diagnostics, modem AT commands (e.g., AT+CGMR), or through the device programmer interface if accessible
    Affected if Any firmware version is present on an affected chip (the advisory lists 'all versions' for each affected product)
  3. Verify device programmer access
    Check if the device programmer component is accessible or enabled. This may require accessing engineering/diagnostic modes, JTAG interfaces, or manufacturer-specific diagnostic tools
    Affected if Device programmer functionality is accessible or the device has diagnostic/engineering modes enabled
  4. Review for anomalous device programmer behavior
    Examine system logs, modem logs, or crash dumps for any records of malformed commands sent to the device programmer component, out-of-bounds memory errors, or unexpected memory access violations
    Affected if Logs show evidence of out-of-bounds memory operations or errors related to the device programmer component

A device is affected if it contains any of the listed Qualcomm chip models (Mdm9206, Mdm9607, Mdm9650, Mdm9655, Msm8909w, Msm8996au, Sd 210, or Sd 212) regardless of firmware version, as all versions of these chips contain the vulnerable device programmer 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 vendor-supplied firmware updates from Qualcomm and device OEMs. Since this is a hardware/firmware-level flaw in the device programmer, no configuration-based workarounds are available; affected devices must receive patched firmware through standard update mechanisms.

Fix this in Mdm9206 Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing16.0 h
  • Review / QA8.0 h
36.0 hours of engineering $6,160
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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-2018-11996 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