CVE-2022-40538
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 · uneditedTransient DOS due to reachable assertion in modem while processing sib with incorrect values from network.
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 reachable assertion in the modem's System Information Block (SIB) processing logic can be triggered when the modem receives malformed or incorrect SIB values broadcast from the cellular network, causing the modem to crash and resulting in a transient denial of service.
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
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 modem chipset modelCheck device documentation, hardware specifications, or use vendor-specific commands (such as AT+QCFG=' chipset' or similar AT commands) to query the modem hardware. Alternatively, visually inspect the PCB for Qualcomm chipset markings.Affected if The modem uses any of these chipsets: Ar8035, Wcn685x (1 or 5), Wcn785x (1 or 5), Qca8081, Qca8337, or Qcn6024.
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Check installed firmware versionQuery the modem firmware version using vendor-specific AT commands (for example: ATI, AT+CGMR, or AT+QVER) or through the device's management interface. Compare against vendor release notes to confirm the version.Affected if The installed firmware version falls within the affected product list (all versions of the listed firmware are affected).
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Verify cellular network SIB processing is enabledConfirm the modem is actively connected to a cellular network and processing SIB messages. This is typically the default state for any operational cellular modem. Check modem status via AT commands (such as AT+CREG?, AT+CEREG?, or AT+CGREG?) or through the network management interface.Affected if The modem is operational and connected to a cellular network, as the vulnerability is triggered by receiving malformed SIB values broadcast from the network.
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Check for modem crash or instability logsReview system logs, modem diagnostics, or network management logs for evidence of unexpected modem resets, crashes, or assertion failures. On Linux, check dmesg or vendor log directories. On embedded devices, check vendor-specific log storage.Affected if Modem crashes or resets are occurring without other explainable causes, which may indicate this vulnerability is being triggered.
If the device contains any of the listed Qualcomm modem chipsets (Ar8035, Wcn685x, Wcn785x, Qca8081, Qca8337, Qcn6024) and the modem is actively processing cellular network signals, the environment is affected since all firmware versions for these chipsets are vulnerable.
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 for affected modem hardware; until patched, monitor modem stability and consider network segmentation to limit exposure.
- Consultation8.0 h
- Implementation16.0 h
- Testing12.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-40538 — 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-2022-40538 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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