dbcve.org
AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2021-0670

MEDIUM · 6.7 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-11-18
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
69/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 apusys, there is a possible memory corruption due to a use after free. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with System execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation. Patch ID: ALPS05654663; Issue ID: ALPS05654663.

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 use-after-free vulnerability exists in the apusys component where memory is accessed after being freed, leading to memory corruption. This can be exploited locally to escalate privileges to System level. The vulnerability requires System execution privileges to exploit but needs no user interaction.

MitigationApply vendor patch ALPS05654663 which addresses the use-after-free in apusys. As this is a kernel-level component vulnerability, ensure the patch is integrated into the system image and verify through code review that proper memory lifecycle management is implemented.

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:= 10.0= 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
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/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. Check Android version
    Run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' to retrieve the Android OS version
    Affected if The version is 10.0 or 11.0 (this CVE only affects these specific versions)
  2. Verify apusys component presence
    Check if the apusys module is loaded by running 'ls /sys/module/ | grep apusys' or check for apusys-related device nodes with 'ls /dev/*apusys*' 2>/dev/null
    Affected if The apusys module or device node exists on the device - the vulnerability resides in this component
  3. Check kernel config for apusys support
    Inspect /proc/config.gz (if available) or check kernel configuration files for CONFIG_APUSYS or similar apusys-related kernel options
    Affected if APUSYS kernel support is enabled in the build configuration
  4. Review system security patch level
    Run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' to obtain the applied security patch date
    Affected if The security patch level is earlier than the vendor patch ALPS05654663 release date (no specific date in provided data, so check if patch is not applied)
  5. Inspect apusys driver files
    Look for apusys driver files in /vendor/lib/modules/ or /kernel/drivers/ and check their file dates or version attributes if exposed
    Affected if Apusys driver files exist and cannot be verified as patched with ALPS05654663

A device is affected if it runs Android 10.0 or 11.0 AND has the apusys subsystem present, with a security patch level predating the vendor fix ALPS05654663.

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 vendor patch ALPS05654663 which addresses the use-after-free in apusys. As this is a kernel-level component vulnerability, ensure the patch is integrated into the system image and verify through code review that proper memory lifecycle management is implemented.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Android 12 or later (December 2021 Android Security Patch Level or later)

  1. Upgrade the device to Android 12 or later, which includes the security patch addressing CVE-2021-0670
  2. If immediate upgrade is not possible, ensure the device receives the latest available Android Security Patch Level (SPL) from the device vendor
  3. Verify the SPL is December 2021 or later, as this vulnerability was addressed in the December 2021 Android Security Bulletin
Caveat Upgrading to Android 12 may introduce UI changes, remove support for some legacy apps, or cause incompatibility with device-specific customizations

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

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2021-0670 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