CVE-2022-21770
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 · uneditedIn sound driver, there is a possible information disclosure due to symlink following. This could lead to local information disclosure with System execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation. Patch ID: ALPS06558663; Issue ID: ALPS06558663.
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 confidenceA vulnerability in the sound driver allows symlink following, potentially exposing sensitive information to local attackers. The issue stems from improper validation of symbolic links within the sound driver component, which could be exploited to read files outside the intended directory. System-level execution privileges are required for exploitation, but no user interaction is needed.
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= 11.0= 12.0CVSS 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check Android versionRun 'getprop ro.build.version.release' or check Settings > About Phone > Android versionAffected if The version is 11.0 or 12.0 exactly (not patched variants)
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Verify sound driver is in useCheck if audio subsystem is active by reviewing /dev/snd/ entries or audio-related kernel modules with 'lsmod | grep snd'Affected if The sound driver component is loaded and accessible on the device
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Check for presence of vulnerable symlink handlingReview sound driver file operations for symlink validation: examine /proc/$(pid)/fd/ for symlinks in audio-related directories, or check if /data/local/tmp or other world-writable directories contain symlinks that could be followed by audio servicesAffected if World-writable directories contain symlinks that audio services could potentially follow
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Confirm patch ALPS06558663 is absentCheck kernel or sound driver patch level via 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' or review sound driver build metadata if accessibleAffected if The patch ALPS06558663 has not been applied to the sound driver
A device is affected if it runs Android 11.0 or 12.0 with an unpatched sound driver that allows symlink following in its file operations.
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 the vendor patch ALPS06558663 to the sound driver. Additionally, implement additional symlink validation checks in file operations within the sound driver to prevent unauthorized file access.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing5.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,752.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-21770 — 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-2022-21770 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data