dbcve.org
AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2021-0946

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-08-24
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
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
The method PVRSRVBridgePMRPDumpSymbolicAddr allocates puiMemspaceNameInt on the heap, fills the contents of the buffer via PMR_PDumpSymbolicAddr, and then copies the buffer to userspace. The method PMR_PDumpSymbolicAddr may fail, and if it does the buffer will be left uninitialized and despite the error will still be copied to userspace. Kernel leak of uninitialized heap data with no privs required.Product: AndroidVersions: Android SoCAndroid ID: A-236846966

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

In the Android kernel, the PVRSRVBridgePMRPDumpSymbolicAddr function allocates a heap buffer, fills it via PMR_PDumpSymbolicAddr, and copies the result to userspace. When PMR_PDumpSymbolicAddr fails, the buffer remains uninitialized but is still copied to userspace, allowing a local attacker to leak sensitive heap data without privileges.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied patch for this PowerVR GPU driver vulnerability in Android SoC firmware; until patched, limit exposure by restricting access to untrusted applications.

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: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
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

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 kernel version
    Run 'uname -r' or check /proc/version to obtain the kernel build version
    Affected if The kernel version has not received the CVE-2021-0946 security patch (check vendor security bulletin)
  2. Determine if device uses PowerVR GPU
    Check /sys/class/graphics or lspci/kmod output for PowerVR GPU components, or check boot logs for 'PowerVR' or 'PVRSRV' driver loading
    Affected if Device contains an Imagination Technologies PowerVR GPU and the kernel is unpatched
  3. Verify PDump module is loaded
    Check lsmod or /proc/modules for pvr, dxg, or related PowerVR driver modules; also check /sys/module/ for pvr module presence
    Affected if PowerVR kernel module is loaded and the CVE patch has not been applied
  4. Check vendor security patch level
    Run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' on Android device and compare to Google Android Security Bulletin for January 2021 or later
    Affected if Security patch level is earlier than January 2021 or not listed as fixed for CVE-2021-0946

Device is affected if it runs an unpatched Android kernel with PowerVR GPU driver loaded and a security patch level before the fix was released.

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 vendor-supplied patch for this PowerVR GPU driver vulnerability in Android SoC firmware; until patched, limit exposure by restricting access to untrusted applications.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence
  1. 1. Check the Android Security Bulletin for the month this vulnerability (A-236846966) was addressed - this was fixed in a monthly security patch
  2. 2. Apply the latest Android security update available for your device, which includes the fix for this kernel information leak
  3. 3. If running a custom ROM or custom kernel, ensure you are using a kernel version that includes the fix for the PVRSRVBridgePMRPDumpSymbolicAddr function
  4. 4. For device manufacturers, obtain the updated vendor driver/hardware abstraction layer code from your SoC provider that properly initializes the buffer before copying to userspace

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

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation16.0 h
  • Testing12.0 h
  • Review / QA8.0 h
44.0 hours of engineering $7,720
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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-2021-0946 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