dbcve.org
Aqt1000 FirmwareOperating system · Qualcomm

CVE-2020-11298

HIGH · 7.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-06-09
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
72/100
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
While waiting for a response to a callback or listener request, non-secure clients can change permissions to shared memory buffers used by HLOS Invoke Call to secure kernel in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer IOT, Snapdragon Industrial IOT, Snapdragon Mobile, Snapdragon Voice & Music, Snapdragon Wired Infrastructure and Networking

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 confidence

This is a time-of-check-to-time-of-use (TOCTOU) race condition vulnerability in Qualcomm Snapdragon processors. During the wait period for a callback or listener response from the secure kernel, non-secure clients can modify permissions on shared memory buffers used by HLOS (High Level Operating System) Invoke Call operations. This allows unauthorized modification of memory buffers that should only be accessible to the secure kernel, potentially enabling privilege escalation or information disclosure.

MitigationThis is a firmware-level vulnerability requiring a security patch from Qualcomm and subsequent OEM/device manufacturer updates. Organizations should identify affected devices, monitor for vendor firmware updates, and apply patches when available. No application-level mitigation is possible.

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
Aqt1000 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Ar8031 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Ar8035 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Csra6620 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Csra6640 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9205 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9206 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Mdm9628 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
High
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/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 Qualcomm chip/firmware model
    Examine system hardware information using commands like `cat /proc/cpuinfo`, `dmesg`, `lspci`, or check device/system documentation for the presence of Qualcomm Aqt1000, Ar8031, Ar8035, Csra6620, Csra6640, Mdm9205, Mdm9206, or Mdm9628 chips or firmware.
    Affected if Any of these specific Qualcomm chips or firmware variants are present on the system or device.
  2. Check firmware version information
    Locate and read firmware version files or sysfs entries for the identified Qualcomm component. On Linux systems, check paths like `/sys/firmware/`, `/lib/firmware/`, or use vendor-specific tools like `qcli` or `atfwd` if available. Consult device manufacturer documentation for the exact method.
    Affected if The firmware version cannot be determined or is any version of the affected models, since all versions are vulnerable.
  3. Verify secure kernel callback mechanism
    Review system logs (e.g., `dmesg`, kernel logs) for HLOS Invoke Call operations and secure kernel callback activity. Check if the system uses TrustZone or tee (Trusted Execution Environment) functionality that handles shared memory buffers between non-secure and secure domains.
    Affected if The system implements HLOS Invoke Call operations with shared memory buffers accessible from the non-secure world.
  4. Confirm high-level OS environment
    Determine if the device runs a high-level operating system (HLOS) such as Android, Linux, or another OS that interfaces with the Qualcomm secure kernel. Check for presence of QSEE, TEE, or similar trusted execution environment components.
    Affected if The system uses a High Level Operating System that interacts with the Qualcomm secure kernel for Invoke Call operations.

If the system contains any of the listed Qualcomm firmware variants (Aqt1000, Ar8031, Ar8035, Csra6620, Csra6640, Mdm9205, Mdm9206, Mdm9628) and uses HLOS Invoke Call operations with shared memory buffers, the environment is affected by this TOCTOU 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

This is a firmware-level vulnerability requiring a security patch from Qualcomm and subsequent OEM/device manufacturer updates. Organizations should identify affected devices, monitor for vendor firmware updates, and apply patches when available. No application-level mitigation is possible.

Fix this in Aqt1000 Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
16.0 hours of engineering $2,920
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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-2020-11298 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