dbcve.org
AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2021-25454

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-09-09
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges

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
OOB read vulnerability in libsaacextractor.so library prior to SMR Sep-2021 Release 1 allows attackers to execute remote DoS via forged aac file.

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

An out-of-bounds (OOB) read vulnerability exists in the libsaacextractor.so library, which handles AAC audio file parsing. The vulnerability allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service by providing a specially crafted (forged) AAC file to the affected device. The vulnerability is present in Samsung mobile devices prior to the SMR September 2021 Release 1 update.

MitigationApply the SMR Sep-2021 Release 1 security update or later, which contains the patch for this vulnerability. Users should avoid opening AAC files from untrusted sources until the device is updated.

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:= 8.1= 9.0= 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
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify device manufacturer
    Check if the device is a Samsung mobile device by examining the device info in Settings > About Phone > Manufacturer or Model
    Affected if Device is not a Samsung mobile device (the specific SMR patch mentioned applies only to Samsung devices)
  2. Check Android version
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Android version to determine the installed Android OS version
    Affected if Android version is 8.1, 9.0, 10.0, or 11.0 (these are the affected versions listed)
  3. Verify Samsung security patch level
    Check Settings > About Phone > Software information > Security patch level to see the installed Samsung security update
    Affected if Security patch level is earlier than September 2021 (the vulnerability is present in versions before SMR Sep-2021 Release 1)
  4. Confirm libsaacextractor.so presence
    Use a file explorer or adb shell to locate libsaacextractor.so in the /system/lib/ or /vendor/lib/ directory
    Affected if The library file exists on the device (the vulnerability resides in this library for AAC parsing)
  5. Check device build for SMR version
    In Settings > About Phone > Software information, check the build number or SMR version field for the Samsung Maintenance Release version
    Affected if Build shows SMR version before Release 1 (the patch was included in the September 2021 Release 1 update)

A user is affected if they have a Samsung device (or Android device with the vulnerable library) running Android 8.1, 9.0, 10.0, or 11.0 with a security patch level before September 2021 Release 1.

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 SMR Sep-2021 Release 1 security update or later, which contains the patch for this vulnerability. Users should avoid opening AAC files from untrusted sources until the device is updated.

Recommended fix High confidence

SMR Sep-2021 Release 1 or later (Samsung Security Maintenance Release)

  1. Check current Samsung device model and ensure it is eligible for Samsung security updates
  2. Navigate to Settings > Software update on the Samsung device
  3. Check for and install the latest Samsung security patch update
  4. Verify the device has received SMR Sep-2021 Release 1 or later which contains the fix for CVE-2021-25454
  5. After update, verify libsaacextractor.so version includes the security fix by checking the Samsung security bulletin

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

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,210
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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-2021-25454 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