dbcve.org
Mdm9206 FirmwareOperating system · Qualcomm

CVE-2018-5871

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.0 Published 2018-09-20
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
70/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
In Snapdragon (Automobile, Mobile, Wear) in version MDM9206, MDM9607, MDM9640, MDM9650, MSM8996AU, QCA6574AU, SD 210/SD 212/SD 205, SD 425, SD 427, SD 430, SD 435, SD 450, SD 615/16/SD 415, SD 625, SD 650/52, SD 820A, SD 835, SD 845, SD 850, SDA660, SDM429, SDM439, SDM630, SDM632, SDM636, SDM660, SDM710, Snapdragon_High_Med_2016, MAC address randomization performed during probe requests (for privacy reasons) is not done properly due to a flawed RNG which produces repeating output much earlier than expected.

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

A flawed RNG (Random Number Generator) in Snapdragon WiFi firmware fails to produce sufficient entropy for MAC address randomization during probe requests. The RNG produces repeating output much earlier than expected, causing MAC addresses to be reused predictably instead of being properly randomized. This defeats the privacy protection mechanism intended to prevent device tracking via probe requests.

MitigationApply vendor firmware patches from Qualcomm and device manufacturers that address the RNG flaw. Until patched, assume devices can be tracked via predictable MAC addresses in WiFi probe requests.

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
Mdm9640 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9650 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Msm8996au FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Qca6574au FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Sd210 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Sd212 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
Adjacent
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.0/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N

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 WiFi chipset model
    Check system information or WiFi driver details (e.g., 'lspci' for PCIe, 'lsusb' for USB, or 'iw list' for wireless interfaces) to determine the Qualcomm WiFi chip model
    Affected if The chipset matches one of the affected models: Mdm9206, Mdm9607, Mdm9640, Mdm9650, Msm8996au, Qca6574au, Sd210, or Sd212
  2. Check WiFi firmware version
    Retrieve the firmware version from the WiFi chip (typically found in /sys/class/net/wlan*/device/firmware_version, via 'dmesg' after loading the WiFi driver, or through 'iw' commands like 'iw dev wlan0 info')
    Affected if The firmware version corresponds to any version of the affected chips listed above (all versions are vulnerable)
  3. Verify MAC address randomization status
    Check if MAC randomization is enabled in the WiFi settings. On Linux, use 'iw dev wlan0 get mesh_param' or check NetworkManager settings. On Android, check Settings > WiFi > Advanced > MAC address randomization
    Affected if MAC address randomization is enabled and the device uses one of the affected chipsets - this means the flawed RNG is being used to generate randomized MACs
  4. Inspect probe request MAC addresses
    Use a WiFi monitor mode interface (e.g., 'airmon-ng start wlan0' then 'airodump-ng' or Wireshark) to capture outgoing probe requests and observe the source MAC addresses over time
    Affected if The same or predictably similar MAC addresses appear repeatedly in probe requests instead of diverse randomized addresses, indicating the RNG flaw is causing predictable/ repeating output

A device is affected if it contains one of the listed Qualcomm WiFi chipsets (Mdm9206, Mdm9607, Mdm9640, Mdm9650, Msm8996au, Qca6574au, Sd210, or Sd212) and has MAC address randomization enabled for probe requests.

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 firmware patches from Qualcomm and device manufacturers that address the RNG flaw. Until patched, assume devices can be tracked via predictable MAC addresses in WiFi probe requests.

Fix this in Mdm9206 Firmware 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
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,600.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-5871 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2018-5871 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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