Cepheus FirmwareOperating system · Mi

CVE-2019-15474

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2019-11-14
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
57/100
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
The Xiaomi Cepheus Android device with a build fingerprint of Xiaomi/cepheus/cepheus:9/PKQ1.181121.001/V10.2.6.0.PFAMIXM:user/release-keys contains a pre-installed app with a package name of com.qualcomm.qti.callenhancement app (versionCode=28, versionName=9) that allows unauthorized microphone audio recording via a confused deputy attack. This capability can be accessed by any app co-located on the device. This app allows a third-party app to use its open interface to record telephone calls to external storage.

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 pre-installed Qualcomm app (com.qualcomm.qti.callenhancement, versionCode=28) on Xiaomi Cepheus Android devices contains a confused deputy vulnerability that allows any co-located app to trigger unauthorized microphone audio recording. The app exposes an open interface that third-party applications can invoke to record telephone calls to external storage without proper authorization checks.

MitigationRemove or disable the vulnerable pre-installed app via device administration or firmware update from Xiaomi; for enterprise deployments, consider mobile device management (MDM) policies to block microphone access for suspicious applications.

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
Cepheus 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
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify device model
    Check if the device is Xiaomi Cepheus (model number typically listed in Settings > About Phone > Model Number, or run 'getprop ro.product.model' via ADB)
    Affected if Device model shows 'Cepheus' or Mi 9 (the Cepheus codename)
  2. Check for vulnerable app presence
    List installed packages using 'pm list packages | grep qualcomm.qti.callenhancement' via ADB shell, or check in Settings > Apps > Show system apps for com.qualcomm.qti.callenhancement
    Affected if The package com.qualcomm.qti.callenhancement is installed on the device
  3. Verify app version
    Run 'dumpsys package com.qualcomm.qti.callenhancement | grep version' via ADB to retrieve the versionCode
    Affected if versionCode is 28 or if the app exists regardless of version on a Cepheus device
  4. Inspect app permissions
    Run 'dumpsys package com.qualcomm.qti.callenhancement | grep -A 50 requested' via ADB to check granted permissions, particularly RECORD_AUDIO and WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE
    Affected if The app has RECORD_AUDIO and WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE permissions granted
  5. Check interface exposure
    Review app manifest (if accessible via 'pm dump com.qualcomm.qti.callenhancement' or decompile the APK) for exported components or intent filters that allow other apps to invoke recording functionality
    Affected if The app exposes an exported activity, service, or broadcast receiver that handles recording commands from other applications

User is affected if running on Xiaomi Cepheus (Mi 9) firmware with the com.qualcomm.qti.callenhancement app installed and granted microphone/storage permissions, as the exposed interface allows unauthorized call recording by any app.

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

Remove or disable the vulnerable pre-installed app via device administration or firmware update from Xiaomi; for enterprise deployments, consider mobile device management (MDM) policies to block microphone access for suspicious applications.

Fix this in Cepheus Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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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-2019-15474 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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