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AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2021-0583

HIGH · 7.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-10-11
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
73/100
Remediation priority · Elevated

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 onCreate of BluetoothPairingDialog, there is a possible way to enable Bluetooth without user consent due to a tapjacking/overlay attack. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with User execution privileges needed. User interaction is needed for exploitation.Product: AndroidVersions: Android-9 Android-10Android ID: A-182282956

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

This is a tapjacking/overlay attack vulnerability in Android's BluetoothPairingDialog (onCreate method). A malicious app can draw an overlay on top of the legitimate Bluetooth pairing dialog to enable Bluetooth without the user's knowledge or consent. The attacker intercepts user taps and redirects them to enable Bluetooth, achieving local privilege escalation through user interaction.

MitigationUsers should avoid installing applications from untrusted sources to prevent overlay-based attacks. The fix requires adding proper window security flags (e.g., checking for TYPE_APPLICATION_OVERLAY or FLAG_NOT_TOUCHABLE) in the BluetoothPairingDialog to detect and block tapjacking attempts.

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:= 9.0= 10.0

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
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/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 Android version
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB shell
    Affected if Version is 9.0 or 10.0 exactly (as specified in affected versions)
  2. Check for apps with overlay permission
    Go to Settings > Apps > Special app access > Display over other apps, or run 'dumpsys package PACKAGE_NAME' to check for SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW permission
    Affected if Any untrusted or unknown application has SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW permission granted
  3. Inspect recently installed apps with overlay capability
    Review the list of apps with display-over-other-apps permission and verify they are from trusted developers
    Affected if Suspicious or unfamiliar apps have overlay permissions, especially before the vulnerability was patched
  4. Check Bluetooth pairing dialog behavior
    Attempt to trigger Bluetooth pairing and observe if any unexpected overlay or interception occurs (requires ADB or test environment)
    Affected if Taps are being intercepted or redirected by a malicious overlay

A user is affected if their Android device runs version 9.0 or 10.0 and has untrusted applications granted the ability to draw overlays (SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW).

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Users should avoid installing applications from untrusted sources to prevent overlay-based attacks. The fix requires adding proper window security flags (e.g., checking for TYPE_APPLICATION_OVERLAY or FLAG_NOT_TOUCHABLE) in the BluetoothPairingDialog to detect and block tapjacking attempts.

Recommended fix High confidence

Android 11 (API 30) or later, or Android 10 with March 2021 Security Patch Level

  1. Check the current Android version by going to Settings > About Phone > Android version
  2. Back up important data to Google Drive or a computer
  3. Go to Settings > System > Software Update (or Settings > About Phone > System Update)
  4. Check for updates and download any available system updates
  5. Restart the device after the update completes
  6. Verify the Android version is now Android 11 (API level 30) or higher, or the Security Patch Level is March 2021 or later
Caveat Android major version upgrades may introduce UI changes and incompatibility with some apps; review app compatibility before upgrading

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing5.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
17.0 hours of engineering $2,970
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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-2021-0583 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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