dbcve.org
AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2022-20490

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-01-26
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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 multiple functions of AutomaticZenRule.java, there is a possible failure to persist permissions settings due to resource exhaustion. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.Product: AndroidVersions: Android-10 Android-11 Android-12 Android-12L Android-13Android ID: A-242703505

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 confidence

A local privilege escalation vulnerability exists in Android's AutomaticZenRule.java where resource exhaustion causes failure to persist permission settings. An attacker with local access can exploit this to gain elevated privileges without additional execution privileges or user interaction.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied Android security patch for CVE-2022-20490, which addresses the resource management issue in AutomaticZenRule.java and ensures proper persistence of permission settings.

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
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 checks

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

  1. Check Android version
    Navigate to Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB shell
    Affected if Version is 10.0, 11.0, 12.0, 12.1, or 13.0 (exactly matching the listed affected versions)
  2. Check security patch level
    Navigate to Settings > About Phone > Security patch level, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' via ADB shell
    Affected if Security patch level is earlier than the November 2022 patch that addresses CVE-2022-20490
  3. Determine if AutomaticZenRule feature is in use
    AutomaticZenRule controls Do Not Disturb (Zen Mode) automated rules. Check if any automated DND rules are configured in Settings > Sound > Do Not Disturb > Schedules or similar
    Affected if Automated DND rules exist and the device runs an unpatched Android version in the affected range
  4. Review system logs for resource exhaustion
    Run 'logcat -d | grep -i automaticzenrule' or 'logcat -d | grep -i zenrule' via ADB to check for persistence failures or resource errors
    Affected if Logs show failures to persist permission settings or resource exhaustion related to AutomaticZenRule

Device is affected if running Android 10.0, 11.0, 12.0, 12.1, or 13.0 without the vendor security patch for CVE-2022-20490 applied.

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 Android security patch for CVE-2022-20490, which addresses the resource management issue in AutomaticZenRule.java and ensures proper persistence of permission settings.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Android 13 (TPM) or later; alternatively any device receiving the November 2022 Android security update

  1. Check your device's current Android version and security patch level in Settings > About Phone > Android version
  2. Identify the appropriate upgrade path for your device: For Google Pixel devices, upgrade to Android 13 (TPM) or later which includes the fix for this vulnerability
  3. For other Android devices, contact your device manufacturer to confirm when a security update containing the fix for Android ID A-242703505 will be available
  4. After upgrading, verify the security patch level is at least the November 2022 security update or later which addresses CVE-2022-20490
  5. You can verify the fix is applied by checking Settings > About Phone > Security patch level shows November 2022 or later
Caveat Upgrading to a new major Android version may cause compatibility issues with older apps or custom ROMs; review app compatibility before upgrading

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

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2022-20490 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