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AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2020-0405

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-09-18
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
In NetworkStackNotifier, there is a possible permissions bypass due to an unsafe implicit PendingIntent. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with User execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.Product: AndroidVersions: Android-11Android ID: A-157475111

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

In NetworkStackNotifier on Android 11, an unsafe implicit PendingIntent allows a permissions bypass that enables local privilege escalation. An implicit PendingIntent doesn't specify an explicit target component, potentially allowing a malicious app to intercept or manipulate the intent and gain elevated privileges without user interaction.

MitigationApply the Android 11 security patch (September 2020 or later) that addresses this vulnerability. Ensure PendingIntents are created with explicit intents and appropriate flags (e.g., FLAG_IMMUTABLE) to prevent interception.

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
AndroidOperating system
Affected:= 11.0

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. Verify Android version is 11.0
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Android version. The vulnerability affects ONLY Android 11.0 exactly, not later versions like 11.0.1 or 11.1
    Affected if The device is running Android 11.0 exactly (not 11.0.1 or later)
  2. Confirm NetworkStackNotifier component exists
    Check if the NetworkStackNotifier system service or APK exists on the device. This is typically found in /system/priv-app/NetworkStackNotifier/ or as part of the Android framework. Use 'adb shell pm list packages | grep -i networkstack' or inspect the system partition.
    Affected if NetworkStackNotifier is present on the device (vulnerability only applies if this component exists)
  3. Identify PendingIntent usage in NetworkStackNotifier
    Examine NetworkStackNotifier code or system logs for PendingIntent creation. Look for PendingIntent.getActivity, PendingIntent.getBroadcast, or PendingIntent.getService calls that do not use FLAG_IMMUTABLE or FLAG_EXCLUDE_CURRENT or do not specify an explicit component.
    Affected if PendingIntents in NetworkStackNotifier are created without explicit target components and without FLAG_IMMUTABLE flag (indicates vulnerable implicit intent)
  4. Check system logs for intent interception opportunities
    Review logcat output for NetworkStackNotifier intents. Use 'adb logcat | grep NetworkStackNotifier' to see if any PendingIntents are being broadcast that could be intercepted by a malicious app registered for matching intent filters.
    Affected if NetworkStackNotifier is broadcasting implicit PendingIntents that could be intercepted by other apps

The device is affected if it runs Android 11.0 exactly AND contains the vulnerable NetworkStackNotifier component with implicit PendingIntents that lack explicit target components and FLAG_IMMUTABLE.

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 the Android 11 security patch (September 2020 or later) that addresses this vulnerability. Ensure PendingIntents are created with explicit intents and appropriate flags (e.g., FLAG_IMMUTABLE) to prevent interception.

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
4.0 hours of engineering $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-2020-0405 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
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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