CVE-2021-44479
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 · uneditedNXP Kinetis K82 devices have a buffer over-read via a crafted wlength value in a GET Status-Other request during use of USB In-System Programming (ISP) mode. This discloses protected flash memory.
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 confidenceNXP Kinetis K82 microcontrollers contain a buffer over-read vulnerability in USB In-System Programming (ISP) mode. When processing a crafted GET Status-Other request with a manipulated wlength value, the USB ISP handler reads beyond buffer boundaries, allowing attackers to extract contents of protected flash memory that should be inaccessible during normal operation.
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 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
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Confirm device is a NXP Kinetis K82Query the USB device descriptor or check the MCU part number via the device programming interface or schematics. The K82 has USB capability and is part of the Kinetis K series.Affected if The device is any NXP Kinetis K82 variant (e.g., MK82FN256VLL15).
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Verify USB ISP mode is enabledCheck the USB ISP enable fuse or configuration bit in flash memory. On K82, this is typically controlled via the FSEC or FOPT bytes in the flash configuration field. Read these bytes via the MCU programming interface or attempt to enumerate USB ISP descriptors on the USB interface.Affected if USB ISP mode is enabled (the ISP enable bit is not set to disabled/0).
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Check if USB ISP interface is accessibleConnect to the USB port and attempt to communicate with the ISP interface. On K82 devices with USB ISP enabled, the device will enumerate as a USB device with ISP-related descriptors. Use a USB analyzer or attempt to send GET_STATUS request.Affected if The device exposes a USB ISP interface and responds to ISP-specific USB requests.
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Assess physical access exposureDetermine if the USB connector for programming is accessible in the deployment environment. Check if USB ISP can be triggered via the USB D+/D- lines without authentication.Affected if Physical or USB access to the device is possible in the target deployment.
A user is affected if they have a Kinetis K82 device with USB ISP mode enabled and the USB interface is accessible, allowing an attacker to send crafted GET Status-Other requests to extract protected flash contents.
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 NXP firmware patches when available. If patching is not immediately feasible, disable USB ISP mode in production deployments and implement physical access controls to prevent unauthorized USB-based exploitation.
- Consultation8.0 h
- Implementation24.0 h
- Testing16.0 h
- Review / QA8.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-44479 — 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-2021-44479 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
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