YoctoApplication · Linuxfoundation

CVE-2023-20802

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-08-07
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
65/100
Remediation priority · Elevated

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 imgsys, there is a possible memory corruption due to improper input validation. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with System execution privileges needed. User interaction is needed for exploitation. Patch ID: ALPS07420968; Issue ID: ALPS07420976.

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 memory corruption vulnerability in the imgsys (image processing system) component allows local privilege escalation from System execution privileges. The flaw stems from improper input validation when processing image data, enabling an attacker with user interaction to corrupt memory and elevate privileges.

MitigationApply vendor patch ALPS07420968 to address the improper input validation in imgsys. Since user interaction is required, restrict access to untrusted image files and monitor for suspicious image processing activity.

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
YoctoApplication
Affected:= 4.0
AndroidOperating system
Affected:= 12.0= 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
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/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 the operating system version
    On the device, run 'cat /etc/lsb-release' for Yocto or check Android system properties via 'getprop ro.build.version.release'
    Affected if The version returned is Yocto 4.0 or Android 12.0/13.0
  2. Verify the imgsys component is present
    Check for imgsys-related processes or services running on the system using 'ps' or 'systemctl list-units' depending on the platform
    Affected if imgsys processes or services are found running on the device
  3. Confirm imgsys input processing is enabled
    Review imgsys configuration files or settings that control image input validation and processing capabilities
    Affected if Image processing features that accept external input are enabled and accessible to applications
  4. Assess user interaction exposure
    Determine if applications or services can trigger imgsys to process user-supplied image files without additional authentication
    Affected if Untrusted image files can be processed through imgsys by an attacker with local access

A system is affected if it runs Yocto 4.0 or Android 12.0/13.0 with the imgsys component active and capable of processing untrusted image data, since the vulnerability requires user interaction to trigger improper input validation.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply vendor patch ALPS07420968 to address the improper input validation in imgsys. Since user interaction is required, restrict access to untrusted image files and monitor for suspicious image processing activity.

Fix this in Yocto Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,560
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Scan for this in your stack

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dbcve dependency scanner

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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-2023-20802 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