dbcve.org
Ipq6018 FirmwareOperating system · Qualcomm

CVE-2019-14119

HIGH · 7.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-09-08
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
72/100
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
u'While processing SMCInvoke asynchronous message header, message count is modified leading to a TOCTOU race condition and lead to memory corruption' in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer IOT, Snapdragon Industrial IOT, Snapdragon Mobile, Snapdragon Voice & Music, Snapdragon Wired Infrastructure and Networking in IPQ6018, Kamorta, MDM9205, MDM9607, Nicobar, QCS404, QCS405, QCS605, QCS610, Rennell, SA415M, SA515M, SA6155P, SC7180, SC8180X, SDM670, SDM710, SDX24, SDX55, SM6150, SM7150, SM8150, SM8250, SXR1130, SXR2130

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 TOCTOU (time-of-check to time-of-use) race condition exists in the SMCInvoke asynchronous message header processing within the secure monitor layer of affected Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets. The vulnerability occurs when message count is modified during processing, allowing an attacker to trigger memory corruption via concurrent message handling.

MitigationApply Qualcomm OEM firmware/security patches and coordinate with device manufacturers for updated firmware. This is a firmware-level fix requiring vendor updates rather than application-level remediation.

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
Ipq6018 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Kamorta FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9205 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9607 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Nicobar FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Qcs404 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Qcs405 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Qcs605 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
High
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/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
    Check the device or system documentation, or use commands like 'lspci' (for PCIe devices), 'cat /proc/cpuinfo', or check bootloader/UEFI information to identify the exact Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset in use
    Affected if The chipset matches one of the following: Ipq6018, Kamorta, Mdm9205, Mdm9607, Nicobar, Qcs404, Qcs405, or Qcs605
  2. Check firmware version of the chipset
    Query the secure monitor or firmware management interface. On Qualcomm-based devices, this may involve checking /vendor/firmware or using OEM-provided diagnostic tools. Use 'cat /proc/bootinfo' or 'dmesg | grep -i firmware' if available, or consult device vendor documentation for firmware version retrieval
    Affected if Any firmware version is installed on the affected chipset (all versions are vulnerable)
  3. Verify secure monitor SMCInvoke functionality
    Check if the device utilizes the secure monitor layer with SMCInvoke asynchronous message handling. This may require reviewing system architecture documentation or using diagnostic interfaces to confirm the SMCInvoke component is present and active
    Affected if The secure monitor SMCInvoke component is present and enabled in the firmware
  4. Confirm concurrent message processing is possible
    Review system configuration or system logs to determine if asynchronous message handling between the non-secure world and secure monitor is operational. This typically requires vendor-specific tools or access to secure world debug interfaces
    Affected if Asynchronous SMCInvoke message processing is enabled and operational on the device

A device is affected if it contains any of the listed Qualcomm chipsets (Ipq6018, Kamorta, Mdm9205, Mdm9607, Nicobar, Qcs404, Qcs405, or Qcs605) with any firmware version, since all versions of the firmware for these chipsets contain the TOCTOU race condition in the secure monitor layer.

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 Qualcomm OEM firmware/security patches and coordinate with device manufacturers for updated firmware. This is a firmware-level fix requiring vendor updates rather than application-level remediation.

Fix this in Ipq6018 Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,080
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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-2019-14119 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