Apq8098 FirmwareOperating system · Qualcomm

CVE-2020-3669

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-09-08
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges 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
u'Buffer Overflow issue in WLAN tcp ip verification due to usage of out of range pointer offset' in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer Electronics Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer IOT, Snapdragon Industrial IOT, Snapdragon Mobile, Snapdragon Voice & Music, Snapdragon Wired Infrastructure and Networking in APQ8098, IPQ5018, IPQ6018, IPQ8074, Kamorta, MSM8998, Nicobar, QCA6390, QCA8081, QCN7605, QCS404, QCS405, QCS605, Rennell, SA415M, SC7180, SC8180X, SDA845, SDM630, SDM636, SDM660, SDM670, SDM710, SDM845, SDM850, SM6150, SM7150, SM8150, SM8250, SXR1130

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

A buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the WLAN TCP/IP verification component of multiple Snapdragon chipsets. The issue stems from the use of an out-of-range pointer offset during verification operations, which can lead to memory corruption. This memory corruption could potentially allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code in the context of the affected component.

MitigationApply firmware updates provided by the device manufacturer that address this vulnerability. Since this is a low-level WLAN firmware issue, contact the OEM or chipset vendor for patched firmware versions.

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
Apq8098 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Ipq5018 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Ipq6018 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Ipq8074 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Kamorta FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Msm8998 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Nicobar FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Qca6390 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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 the WLAN chipset model
    Determine the specific Qualcomm chipset used in the device by checking hardware specifications, device documentation, or by querying the system (e.g., via lspci, at commands, or manufacturer specs)
    Affected if The chipset matches one of the following: Apq8098, Ipq5018, Ipq6018, Ipq8074, Kamorta, Msm8998, Nicobar, or Qca6390
  2. Confirm WLAN firmware version
    Retrieve the currently installed WLAN firmware version using vendor-specific commands or diagnostic tools (e.g., at+ver, firmware version in /proc, or OEM diagnostic interface)
    Affected if Any firmware version is returned, since all versions of the affected chipsets are vulnerable
  3. Verify WLAN TCP/IP stack is enabled
    Check if the WLAN interface is active and the TCP/IP verification component is operational. This can be done by confirming the WLAN driver is loaded and the network interface is up (e.g., ifconfig wlan0, ip link show)
    Affected if The WLAN interface is present and active, indicating the vulnerable TCP/IP verification component is running
  4. Check for exposed WLAN management interfaces
    Inspect whether the device exposes WLAN management or control interfaces (e.g., Wi-Fi daemon status, hostapd, or other WLAN management services) that could receive malicious TCP/IP packets
    Affected if WLAN management services are running and accessible, creating a potential attack vector for the buffer overflow

If the device contains any of the listed Qualcomm chipsets (Apq8098, Ipq5018, Ipq6018, Ipq8074, Kamorta, Msm8998, Nicobar, Qca6390) and has WLAN functionality enabled, the 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

Apply firmware updates provided by the device manufacturer that address this vulnerability. Since this is a low-level WLAN firmware issue, contact the OEM or chipset vendor for patched firmware versions.

Fix this in Apq8098 Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation16.0 h
  • Testing12.0 h
  • Review / QA8.0 h
40.0 hours of engineering $6,920
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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-2020-3669 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