CVE-2019-2165
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 · uneditedIn libxaac there is a possible out of bounds read due to a missing bounds check. This could lead to information disclosure with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is needed for exploitation. Product: AndroidVersions: Android-10Android ID: A-112712154
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 · moderate confidenceIn libxaac (an AAC audio decoding library), a missing bounds check allows an out-of-bounds read vulnerability. An attacker could exploit this by providing a specially crafted media file that triggers the improper bounds check, leading to information disclosure. User interaction is required (e.g., playing a malicious audio file).
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= 10.0CVSS 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
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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.
-
Confirm Android version is 10.0Go to Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via adb shellAffected if The device runs Android 10.0 exactly - versions before or after this specific release are not affected by this CVE
-
Locate libxaac library on the systemRun 'find /system/lib -name "*libxaac*"' or 'find /vendor/lib -name "*libxaac*"' via adb shell to locate the libraryAffected if The library file exists on the device - absence of libxaac means the attack surface does not exist
-
Check if any apps have permission to process AAC audio filesReview installed apps that handle audio/media, particularly music players, voice recorders, or messaging apps with audio playbackAffected if Media playback apps are installed and active - the vulnerability requires a user to play a crafted audio file
-
Identify if device uses the vulnerable media frameworkCheck if the system uses Stagefright or MediaCodec for AAC decoding by examining logs when playing an audio file: 'logcat | grep -i aac'Affected if The device uses libxaac for AAC decoding - the flaw only applies when this specific library handles the audio
-
Verify system is not patchedCheck Android security patch level in Settings > About Phone > Security patch level, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch'Affected if Security patch level is earlier than the fix for CVE-2019-2165 (Android security bulletin from early 2019)
A device is affected if it runs Android 10.0 specifically, contains the libxaac library, and has apps that can process AAC audio files - the user must play a maliciously crafted audio file for exploitation.
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 dataUpdate libxaac to a version with the bounds check added, or apply the relevant Android security patch for Android-10. Users should apply available system security updates.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing5.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,752.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-2165 — 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-2019-2165 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
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.
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.
- 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