dbcve.org
AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2022-20454

MEDIUM · 6.7 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-11-08
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 fdt_next_tag of fdt.c, there is a possible out of bounds write due to an integer overflow. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with System execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.Product: AndroidVersions: Android-10 Android-11 Android-12 Android-12L Android-13Android ID: A-242096164

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

Integer overflow in fdt_next_tag function of fdt.c allows out-of-bounds write during flattened device tree parsing. This occurs in low-level boot/firmware code when processing device tree tags, potentially allowing a local attacker with System privileges to escalate to elevated privileges.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied Android security patches for the affected versions (Android 10-13). Since this is a kernel/boot firmware vulnerability, application-level controls are ineffective; system update deployment is required.

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= 12.0= 12.1= 13.0

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. Verify Android version
    Check the device's Android version in Settings > About Phone > Android version (or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via adb shell)
    Affected if The version is 10.0, 11.0, 12.0, 12.1, or 13.0 and the security patch level is earlier than the November 2022 Android Security Patch Level
  2. Check security patch level
    Check Settings > About Phone > Security patch level (or run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' via adb shell)
    Affected if The security patch level is earlier than 2022-11-05, indicating the vendor patch for CVE-2022-20454 has not been applied
  3. Confirm device tree processing is in use
    Verify the device uses Flattened Device Tree (FDT) by checking kernel config for CONFIG_OF and CONFIG_DT (or inspect /proc/device-tree on the device via adb shell)
    Affected if The device uses FDT for boot/firmware configuration and meets the version criteria in steps 1-2

A device is affected if it runs Android 10.0, 11.0, 12.0, 12.1, or 13.0 with a security patch level earlier than November 2022 and utilizes Flattened Device Tree in its boot chain.

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-supplied Android security patches for the affected versions (Android 10-13). Since this is a kernel/boot firmware vulnerability, application-level controls are ineffective; system update deployment is required.

Recommended fix High confidence

Android-13 (or latest available Android version with November 2022 security patch level or later)

  1. 1. Check your current Android version and security patch level in Settings > About Phone > Version Number
  2. 2. Go to Settings > Security > Security update to verify your current patch level
  3. 3. Check for system updates by going to Settings > System > System Update or Settings > About Phone > System Updates
  4. 4. If updates are available, download and install the latest Android security patch
  5. 5. After updating, verify the security patch level is the November 2022 release or later which contains the fix for CVE-2022-20454
Caveat Major Android version upgrades may have compatibility issues with existing apps or settings; backup data before upgrading

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

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing16.0 h
  • Review / QA12.0 h
40.0 hours of engineering $6,880
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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-2022-20454 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