CVE-2021-0551
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 · uneditedIn bind of MediaControlPanel.java, there is a possible way to lock up the system UI using a malicious media file due to improper input validation. This could lead to remote denial of service with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is needed for exploitation.Product: AndroidVersions: Android-11Android ID: A-180518039
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 confidenceThis is a denial of service vulnerability in Android 11's MediaControlPanel.java component. The bind function lacks proper input validation, allowing a malicious media file to cause the system UI to lock up or become unresponsive. Exploitation requires user interaction to open/play the malicious file.
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= 11.0CVSS 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
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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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Check Android versionNavigate to Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run 'adb shell getprop ro.build.version.release'Affected if Version is exactly 11.0 (the only affected version per this CVE)
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Confirm MediaControlPanel component is activeThe MediaControlPanel.java is part of the Android 11 system UI framework that handles media playback controls; this component is built into Android 11 and cannot be disabled without breaking media functionalityAffected if The device has a functional media framework and can play media files
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Assess media file interaction riskDetermine if users on this device open or play media files from external or untrusted sources using the built-in media player or any app that invokes system media controlsAffected if Users open/play media files that could be maliciously crafted
The device is affected if running Android 11.0 and users interact with media files through the system's media controls, since the vulnerable bind function in MediaControlPanel.java lacks input validation.
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 dataApply the Android security patch for CVE-2021-0551 (Android-11). Users should avoid opening media files from untrusted sources to prevent triggering the vulnerability.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation3.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-0551 — 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-2021-0551 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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- 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
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