CVE-2018-5858
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 the audio debugfs in all Android releases from CAF using the Linux kernel (Android for MSM, Firefox OS for MSM, QRD Android) before security patch level 2018-07-05, out of bounds access can occur.
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 confidenceAn out-of-bounds memory access vulnerability exists in the audio debugfs (debug file system) interface within the Android Linux kernel for MSM (Mobile Station Modem) platforms. This flaw affects Android for MSM, Firefox OS for MSM, and QRD Android builds from CAF (Code Aurora Forum) prior to the July 2018 security patch level. The vulnerability could allow local privilege escalation or information disclosure.
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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Identify if the device uses an MSM chipsetCheck /proc/cpuinfo or /sys/devices/system/cpu/ for Qualcomm Snapdragon or MSM identifiers, or check the kernel configuration for CONFIG_ARCH_MSMAffected if The device is built on an MSM (Mobile Station Modem) platform from Qualcomm
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Verify debugfs is accessibleCheck if debugfs is mounted: mount | grep debugfs or ls /sys/kernel/debug/Affected if debugfs is mounted and accessible, exposing kernel debug interfaces
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Check for audio debugfs entriesList contents of /sys/kernel/debug/ for audio-related directories such as 'audio' or 'asoc' (ALSA system-on-chip)Affected if Audio debugfs entries exist in /sys/kernel/debug/ and are readable
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Verify the Android security patch levelCheck the Android build information: Settings > About Phone > Build Number, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' via adbAffected if The security patch level is earlier than July 2018 (e.g., June 2018 or earlier)
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Confirm the kernel version contextRun 'uname -r' or check /proc/version to identify the kernel version; compare against kernels released prior to the July 2018 CAF (Code Aurora Forum) updatesAffected if The kernel is from a build prior to the July 2018 CAF release containing the fix
A user is likely affected if they have an MSM-based Android device with debugfs audio interfaces exposed and a security patch level before July 2018.
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 July 2018 Android security patch level or later, which includes the fix for this audio debugfs out-of-bounds access vulnerability in the kernel.
- Consultation8.0 h
- Implementation16.0 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 $11,776.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-5858 — 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-2018-5858 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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