dbcve.org
AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2021-0649

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-12-15
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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
In stopVpnProfile of Vpn.java, there is a possible VPN profile reset due to a permissions bypass. This could lead to local escalation of privilege CONTROL_ALWAYS_ON_VPN with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.Product: AndroidVersions: Android-11Android ID: A-191382886

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

A permissions bypass exists in the stopVpnProfile function of Android's Vpn.java, allowing a local attacker to reset VPN profiles without proper authorization and gain CONTROL_ALWAYS_ON_VPN privilege. This enables local privilege escalation with no user interaction required.

MitigationApply the Android security patch for Android-11 that addresses Android ID A-191382886. For enterprise environments, deploy the update through MDM/EMM platforms to ensure all managed devices receive the fix.

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:= 11.0

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
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/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. Verify Android version
    Check the device's Android version through Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run `adb shell getprop ro.build.version.release`
    Affected if The device is running Android 11.0 exactly (not patched) and has VPN profiles configured
  2. Check for VPN profile configuration
    Navigate to Settings > Network & Internet > VPN, or run `adb shell settings list global | grep vpn`
    Affected if Any VPN profiles (including legacy ones) exist on the device running Android 11.0
  3. Inspect Always-on VPN status
    Check Settings > Network & Internet > VPN > Always-on VPN, or run `adb shell settings get global always_on_vpn_mode`
    Affected if Always-on VPN is enabled on a device running unpatched Android 11.0, as the vulnerability allows privilege escalation to CONTROL_ALWAYS_ON_VPN
  4. Check for MDM/EMM management
    Verify if the device is managed by checking Settings > About Phone > Device name (often shows 'Managed by your organization'), or run `adb shell settings get global device_provisioned`
    Affected if The device is enterprise-managed but may not have received the security patch for Android ID A-191382886

A device is affected if it runs Android 11.0 and has any VPN configuration present, as the vulnerable stopVpnProfile function in Vpn.java can be exploited to gain unauthorized CONTROL_ALWAYS_ON_VPN privilege.

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

Apply the Android security patch for Android-11 that addresses Android ID A-191382886. For enterprise environments, deploy the update through MDM/EMM platforms to ensure all managed devices receive the fix.

Recommended fix High confidence

July 2021 Android Security Update (or later monthly update for Android 11)

  1. Apply the July 2021 Android security update (or later) to your Android 11 device
  2. Verify the security patch level is at least 2021-07-01 or later via Settings > About Phone > Android version or Security patch level
  3. If the device no longer receives monthly updates, consider upgrading to a newer Android version that includes this fix (Android 12 or later receives continued security support
Caveat Monthly security updates depend on device manufacturer support; some older devices may not receive patches beyond a certain date

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

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,150
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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2021-0649 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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