dbcve.org
AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2018-9403

MEDIUM · 6.7 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-12-05
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
69/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 the MTK_FLP_MSG_HAL_DIAG_REPORT_DATA_NTF handler of flp2hal_- interface.c, there is a possible stack buffer overflow due to a missing bounds check. This could lead to local escalation of privilege in a privileged process with System execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.

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

A stack buffer overflow exists in the MTK_FLP_MSG_HAL_DIAG_REPORT_DATA_NTF handler in flp2hal_interface.c due to missing bounds checking on data. This allows a local attacker with System execution privileges to potentially overflow a stack buffer and achieve further privilege escalation.

MitigationAdd proper bounds checking in the MTK_FLP_MSG_HAL_DIAG_REPORT_DATA_NTF handler to validate input data length before copying into fixed-size stack buffers.

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: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
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/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. Confirm Android OS and MediaTek chipset
    Check if the device is running Android and uses a MediaTek SoC. On the device, run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' for Android version and 'getprop ro.mediatek.platform' or check /proc/cpuinfo for MTK hardware.
    Affected if Device runs Android on MediaTek hardware - the vulnerability exists in MediaTek's FLP (Fused Location Provider) HAL interface component flp2hal_interface.c
  2. Identify the FLP HAL component version
    Locate the flp2hal_interface library or check MediaTek vendor patches. On the device, search for 'flp2hal_interface' in /vendor or /system vendor directories, or run 'dumpsys' related to location services to identify the FLP HAL in use.
    Affected if The flp2hal_interface.c component containing MTK_FLP_MSG_HAL_DIAG_REPORT_DATA_NTF handler is present and unpatched - the overflow occurs in this specific handler due to missing bounds checking on diag report data
  3. Verify the diag report handler is accessible
    Check if the MTK_FLP_MSG_HAL_DIAG_REPORT_DATA_NTF handler is exposed through the FLP HAL interface. This typically requires System-level execution context to interact with the MediaTek FLP diag interface.
    Affected if The diag report handler (MTK_FLP_MSG_HAL_DIAG_REPORT_DATA_NTF) is enabled and accessible to a process running with System privileges - the vulnerability requires this execution context to trigger the buffer overflow

A user is affected if they are running Android on a MediaTek device with the unpatched flp2hal_interface.c component containing the MTK_FLP_MSG_HAL_DIAG_REPORT_DATA_NTF handler vulnerable to stack buffer overflow when processing diag report data without bounds validation.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Add proper bounds checking in the MTK_FLP_MSG_HAL_DIAG_REPORT_DATA_NTF handler to validate input data length before copying into fixed-size stack buffers.

Recommended fix High confidence

December 2018 Android Security Patch Level (or later) - check with your device manufacturer for specific update availability

  1. Check your Android device's security patch level in Settings > About Phone > Android version or Settings > Security & privacy > System > Security patch level
  2. If the patch level is earlier than December 2018, check for a system update available from your device manufacturer
  3. Apply the December 2018 Android Security Update or later, which includes the fix for CVE-2018-9403 in the MediaTek FLP driver
  4. After updating, verify the security patch level reflects December 2018 or later in the device settings
Caveat Updates are manufacturer-dependent; some older devices may not receive monthly security patches. Contact your device vendor for update availability.

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,130
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,408.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-9403 — 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-2018-9403 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