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Apq8096au FirmwareOperating system · Qualcomm

CVE-2019-14021

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-04-16
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
Possible buffer overrun when processing EFS filename and payload sent over diag interface due to lack of check for filename length and payload size received in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Consumer IOT, Snapdragon Industrial IOT, Snapdragon Mobile, Snapdragon Wearables in APQ8096AU, APQ8098, MDM9150, MDM9206, MDM9607, MDM9640, MDM9650, MSM8905, MSM8909, MSM8909W, MSM8917, MSM8920, MSM8937, MSM8940, MSM8953, MSM8996AU, MSM8998, Nicobar, QCM2150, QCS605, QM215, Rennell, SC7180, SC8180X, SDA660, SDA845, SDM429, SDM429W, SDM439, SDM450, SDM630, SDM632, SDM636, SDM660, SDM670, SDM710, SDM845, SDM850, SDX20, SDX24, SDX55, SM6150, SM7150, SM8150, SXR1130

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

Buffer overrun vulnerability in Qualcomm Snapdragon processors due to insufficient validation of filename length and payload size when processing EFS (Embedded File System) data received over the diagnostic interface. An attacker could exploit this to execute arbitrary code or cause denial of service by sending specially crafted malformed data.

MitigationApply vendor firmware updates from device OEMs; this is a chipset-level vulnerability requiring patches to be distributed through Qualcomm's secure firmware update mechanism and deployed via OTA updates to affected devices.

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
Apq8096au FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Apq8098 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9150 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9206 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9607 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9640 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9650 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Msm8905 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:3.1/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 chipset model
    Determine the Qualcomm processor model in the device (check /proc/cpuinfo on Android, or system information on embedded devices)
    Affected if The chipset is one of: Apq8096au, Apq8098, Mdm9150, Mdm9206, Mdm9607, Mdm9640, Mdm9650, or Msm8905
  2. Check if diagnostic interface is enabled
    Look for diagnostic/EFS service availability or check if diag port or Diag over USB/serial is exposed. On Android, check for /dev/diag or inspect running services for diagnostic handlers
    Affected if The diagnostic interface (diag/EFS) is accessible and not restricted by policy
  3. Verify firmware version
    Query the baseband or firmware version through AT commands (AT+CGMR or AT+QVERSION), or through diagnostic logs, or check /sys/firmware_version or /proc/version
    Affected if The firmware version corresponds to any of the affected chipsets listed (all versions of these chipsets are affected)
  4. Check for diagnostic interface exposure over network
    Inspect network services listening on diagnostic ports (typically ports 2500, 2501 for Qualcomm DIAG) or check if diag service is bound to network interfaces
    Affected if Diagnostic interface is exposed over network or accessible without authentication

The device is affected if it uses any of the listed Qualcomm chipset models (Apq8096au, Apq8098, Mdm9150, Mdm9206, Mdm9607, Mdm9640, Mdm9650, Msm8905) and has the diagnostic interface enabled or accessible.

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 updates from device OEMs; this is a chipset-level vulnerability requiring patches to be distributed through Qualcomm's secure firmware update mechanism and deployed via OTA updates to affected devices.

Fix this in Apq8096au Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
13.0 hours of engineering $2,240
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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-2019-14021 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