CVE-2020-14123
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 · uneditedThere is a pointer double free vulnerability in Some MIUI Services. When a function is called, the memory pointer is copied to two function modules, and an attacker can cause the pointer to be repeatedly released through malicious operations, resulting in the affected module crashing and affecting normal functionality, and if successfully exploited the vulnerability can cause elevation of privileges.
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 confidenceA double-free vulnerability exists in MIUI Services where a memory pointer is copied to two function modules. An attacker can trigger the pointer to be freed twice through malicious operations, causing a crash and potentially leading to privilege escalation.
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= 12.5.2CVSS 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
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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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Identify MIUI versionCheck the system MIUI version by accessing Settings > About Phone > MIUI Version, or by running 'getprop ro.miui.ui.version.name' via ADB shell or terminal emulatorAffected if The version displayed is 12.5.2 exactly
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Verify MIUI Services componentConfirm that MIUI Services (the system service handling core Xiaomi features) is present on the device. This is typically a system-level service bundled with MIUI ROMAffected if MIUI Services application or service component exists on the device and is accessible
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Confirm vulnerability scopeThe double-free occurs specifically in MIUI Services when a memory pointer is passed to two function modules and both attempt to free it. This is triggered through malicious operations targeting the serviceAffected if The device runs MIUI 12.5.2 with MIUI Services actively handling memory allocation/deallocation operations
A user is affected if their device runs exactly MIUI version 12.5.2 and the MIUI Services component is present and operational, as the double-free vulnerability exists in that specific version's service code.
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 dataImplement proper memory management by ensuring the pointer is nullified after the first free operation, or use reference counting to track pointer ownership across the two function modules.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 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 $5,408.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-14123 — 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-2020-14123 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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