Apq8016 FirmwareOperating system · Qualcomm

CVE-2019-2251

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2019-11-21
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
If a bitmap file is loaded from any un-authenticated source, there is a possibility that the bitmap can potentially cause stack buffer overflow. in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer Electronics Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer IOT, Snapdragon Industrial IOT, Snapdragon Mobile, Snapdragon Voice & Music in APQ8016, APQ8096AU, APQ8098, MDM9205, MSM8996AU, MSM8998, Nicobar, QCS405, QCS605, SA6155P, SC8180X, SDA660, SDA845, SDM630, SDM636, SDM660, SDM670, SDM710, SDM845, SDM850, SDX24, 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

Stack buffer overflow vulnerability in bitmap file parsing within multiple Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset families. When loading bitmap files from un-authenticated sources, the parsing logic fails to properly validate bounds, allowing data to overflow stack-allocated buffers.

MitigationAvoid loading bitmap files from untrusted/unauthenticated sources; apply vendor firmware patches when released; implement input validation and bounds checking on bitmap parsing code.

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
Apq8016 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Apq8096au FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Apq8098 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9205 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Msm8996au FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Msm8998 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Nicobar FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Qcs405 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 chipset model
    Determine the exact Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset model present in your device or system. This information is typically found in system information, device specifications, or through firmware/system queries (e.g., 'lspci' for PCI devices, 'cat /proc/cpuinfo' on embedded Linux systems, or check boot logs).
    Affected if The chipset matches one of: Apq8016, Apq8096au, Apq8098, Mdm9205, Msm8996au, Msm8998, Nicobar, or Qcs405.
  2. Confirm firmware is Qualcomm-based
    Verify that the firmware running on the device is Qualcomm firmware and not an alternative implementation. Check boot logs, firmware headers, or system diagnostics that indicate the firmware vendor.
    Affected if The firmware is confirmed to be from the affected Qualcomm product line.
  3. Assess bitmap file loading exposure
    Evaluate whether the system or application can load bitmap files from untrusted or unauthenticated sources. This includes checking if there are features that accept bitmap uploads, process image files from external inputs, or parse bitmap files as part of normal operation.
    Affected if Bitmap files from untrusted sources can be loaded or processed by the system.
  4. Check for vulnerable bitmap parsing feature
    Identify if the firmware includes bitmap parsing functionality. This is typically present in graphics processing, image viewing, or multimedia components. Check enabled features/modules related to image handling.
    Affected if Bitmap parsing feature is enabled and operational on the device.

If your device uses one of the affected Qualcomm chipset models (Apq8016, Apq8096au, Apq8098, Mdm9205, Msm8996au, Msm8998, Nicobar, or Qcs405) and can load bitmap files from untrusted sources, then your environment is affected by this vulnerability.

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

Avoid loading bitmap files from untrusted/unauthenticated sources; apply vendor firmware patches when released; implement input validation and bounds checking on bitmap parsing code.

Fix this in Apq8016 Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,940
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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-2019-2251 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