Lr11Operating system · Mediatek

CVE-2023-20819

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-10-02
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges 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 CDMA PPP protocol, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a missing bounds check. This could lead to remote escalation of privilege with no additional execution privilege needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation. Patch ID: MOLY01068234; Issue ID: ALPS08010003.

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

A missing bounds check in the CDMA PPP (Point-to-Point Protocol) implementation allows an out-of-bounds memory write. This memory corruption vulnerability can be exploited remotely without user interaction, potentially leading to privilege escalation. The issue is traced to patch ID MOLY01068234.

MitigationApply the vendor patch (MOLY01068234). If unavailable, consider network-level filtering of PPP traffic or disabling CDMA PPP functionality to reduce attack surface while a fix is developed.

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
Lr11Operating system
Affected:all versions
Lr12aOperating system
Affected:all versions
Lr13Operating system
Affected:all versions
Nr15Operating system
Affected:all versions
Nr16Operating system
Affected:all versions
Nr17Operating system
Affected:all versions

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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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. Identify the modem hardware model
    Check the device documentation, system information, or modem AT commands (e.g., AT+CGMM or AT+CGMI) to determine if the hardware is a Mediatek Lr11, Lr12a, Lr13, Nr15, Nr16, or Nr17 device.
    Affected if The device is a Mediatek Lr11, Lr12a, Lr13, Nr15, Nr16, or Nr17 modem.
  2. Confirm firmware version range
    Query the modem firmware version using AT commands (e.g., AT+CGMR) or through the host system interface. Compare the version to the affected product list.
    Affected if The firmware corresponds to any version of Mediatek Lr11, Lr12a, Lr13, Nr15, Nr16, or Nr17.
  3. Verify CDMA PPP functionality is enabled
    Check the modem configuration or network settings for active CDMA PPP connections. Look for PPP-related interfaces, dial-up profiles, or CDMA network registrations in the system logs or configuration files.
    Affected if CDMA PPP functionality is actively enabled or configured on the device.
  4. Assess network exposure
    Review network traffic monitoring or firewall rules to determine if PPP traffic (typically on serial interfaces) can be received from untrusted sources or if the CDMA modem has direct network exposure.
    Affected if The CDMA PPP interface is reachable from network or handles external PPP traffic.

If the device uses Mediatek Lr11, Lr12a, Lr13, Nr15, Nr16, or Nr17 firmware with CDMA PPP enabled and exposed to network traffic, the environment is affected by this vulnerability.

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 the vendor patch (MOLY01068234). If unavailable, consider network-level filtering of PPP traffic or disabling CDMA PPP functionality to reduce attack surface while a fix is developed.

Fix this in Lr11 Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,120
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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-2023-20819 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