CVE-2019-2218
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 createSessionInternal of PackageInstallerService.java, there is a possible improper permission grant due to a missing permission check. This could lead to local escalation of privilege by installing malicious packages with User execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation. Product: Android Versions: Android-8.0, Android-8.1, Android-9, and Android-10 Android ID: A-141169173
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 confidenceA missing permission check in PackageInstallerService.java's createSessionInternal method allows a local attacker to install malicious packages with User execution privileges without user interaction, enabling local privilege escalation on affected Android 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= 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
- 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check Android versionGo to Settings > About Phone > Android version and note the displayed version numberAffected if The version shown is 10.0 (exactly) or falls within the Android 10.x release line
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Check security patch levelGo to Settings > About Phone > Security patch level and note the dateAffected if The security patch level is earlier than October 2019, or the field shows unknown/blank indicating no patch has been applied
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Verify package installation behaviorAttempt to initiate a package installation through adb using 'pm install' or observe if apps can be installed without the standard permission promptsAffected if Apps can be installed silently or with User execution privileges without user interaction or password verification
A device is affected if it runs Android 10.0 (exact version) and lacks the October 2019 security patch, as the missing permission check in PackageInstallerService.createSessionInternal allows silent package installation.
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 October 2019 Android security patch or later to affected devices; organizations should verify patch status across device fleets and prioritize updates for sensitive environments.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,048.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-2218 — 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-2019-2218 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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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
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