CVE-2021-30281
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 · uneditedPossible unauthorized access to secure space due to improper check of data allowed while flashing the no access control device configuration in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer IOT, Snapdragon Industrial IOT, Snapdragon Voice & Music, Snapdragon Wearables, Snapdragon Wired Infrastructure and Networking
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 confidenceImproper validation during the device configuration flashing process allows flashing a 'no access control' configuration, potentially granting unauthorized access to secure memory regions. This appears to be a boot security vulnerability in the firmware flashing mechanism where access control checks are not properly enforced before allowing modifications that affect secure space boundaries.
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 dataall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsCVSS 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify affected Qualcomm firmware in your environmentInventory all network or embedded devices and identify those running Qualcomm Aqt1000, Ar8031, Ar8035, Csr8811, Csra6620, Csra6640, Csrb31024, or Fsm10055 firmware. Check device documentation, boot logs, or management interfaces for firmware identification.Affected if Any of these eight Qualcomm firmware variants are present in the environment, as all versions are affected.
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Check firmware version against vendor updatesQuery each identified device for its current firmware version through vendor-specific interfaces (serial console, management UI, SNMP, or API). Compare the installed version to any publicly available patched versions from Qualcomm.Affected if The firmware version has not been updated to a vendor patch that addresses the access control validation flaw.
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Verify flashing interface accessibilityDetermine whether device configuration flashing interfaces (JTAG, SWD, vendor-specific flashing tools, or firmware update APIs) are exposed. Check network exposure, physical access controls, and authentication requirements on these interfaces.Affected if The flashing interface is accessible without proper authentication or isolation from untrusted actors.
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Inspect secure space boundary configurationIf accessible, review the device configuration for access control settings related to secure memory regions. Look for configuration flags or parameters that control whether access control is enforced during the flashing process.Affected if The configuration shows no access control enforcement or permits modifications to secure space boundaries without validation.
If any of the eight affected Qualcomm firmware variants are present and the device flashing interface is accessible or the firmware lacks vendor patches, the environment is potentially affected by this access control bypass.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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.
From vendor dataApply vendor-supplied firmware updates from Qualcomm that enforce proper access control validation during device configuration flashing. Until patched, restrict physical access to device flashing interfaces and verify firmware integrity before deployment.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-30281 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-30281 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- 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
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