CVE-2018-9489
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 · uneditedWhen wifi is switched, function sendNetworkStateChangeBroadcast of WifiStateMachine.java broadcasts an intent including detailed wifi network information. This could lead to information disclosure with no execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation. Product: Android Versions: Android-7.0 Android-7.1.1 Android-7.1.2 Android-8.0 Android-8.1 Android-9.0 Android ID: A-77286245.
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 confidenceThe WifiStateMachine.java component in Android broadcasts detailed WiFi network information (SSID, BSSID, security credentials) via an intent without proper access controls when network state changes. Any installed application can receive this broadcast without requiring any permissions, leading to sensitive network configuration 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 data= 7.0= 7.1.1= 7.1.2= 8.0= 8.1= 9.0CVSS 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
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check Android OS versionGo to Settings > About Phone (or About Device) > Android version. Record the full version number shown (for example, 8.1 or 9.0).Affected if The version is 7.0, 7.1.1, 7.1.2, 8.0, 8.1, or 9.0 (exact matches as listed in affected products). Versions 10.0 and later are not affected.
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Confirm WiFi is configuredVerify that WiFi has been configured on the device at some point by checking Settings > Network & Internet > WiFi for any saved networks or a history of connections.Affected if WiFi has been enabled or configured on the device. The vulnerability only exposes data when the WifiStateMachine broadcasts network state changes, which occurs during WiFi operations.
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Check Security Patch LevelGo to Settings > About Phone > Security patch level. This shows the date of the last Android security update.Affected if The Security Patch Level is earlier than the September 2018 security update that addresses this vulnerability. Devices with patch levels after September 2018 should have the fix.
You are affected if the device runs Android 7.0, 7.1.1, 7.1.2, 8.0, 8.1, or 9.0 and has WiFi configured, and the Security Patch Level predates the fix.
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 Android system update containing the fix (patched in Android 10 and later). For organizations with custom Android builds, modify the sendNetworkStateChangeBroadcast function to restrict broadcast recipients or redact sensitive fields before transmission.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-9489 — 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-2018-9489 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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