dbcve.org
AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2023-20923

MEDIUM · 5.5 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 →
57/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 exported content providers of ShannonRcs, there is a possible way to get access to protected content providers due to a permissions bypass. This could lead to local information disclosure with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.Product: AndroidVersions: Android kernelAndroid ID: A-246933910References: N/A

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

This vulnerability is a permissions bypass in exported content providers within the ShannonRcs (Rich Communication Services) component on Android. The content provider is exported without proper permission checks, allowing any local application to access protected data that should require specific permissions. This enables unauthorized local information disclosure without requiring any special privileges or user interaction.

MitigationThe fix requires reviewing and properly configuring the AndroidManifest.xml entries for ShannonRcs content providers - either by adding proper permission requirements (android:writePermission/android:readPermission) or by setting android:exported to false if the providers are meant for internal use only.

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

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 if ShannonRcs component is present
    Run 'adb shell pm list packages | grep -i rcs' or 'adb shell pm list packages | grep -i shannon' to list installed packages related to RCS or Shannon. Alternatively, check /data/data or /system/priv-app for RCS-related directories.
    Affected if No ShannonRcs or RCS-related package is found on the device - the component is not present and therefore not vulnerable.
  2. Locate the ShannonRcs AndroidManifest.xml
    If ShannonRcs package is found (e.g., com.shannon.rcs or similar), use 'adb shell pm path <package_name>' to find the APK path, then inspect the AndroidManifest.xml inside the APK using 'aapt dump badging <apk_path>' or by pulling and examining the manifest.
    Affected if The AndroidManifest.xml cannot be retrieved - inspection is not possible without root or appropriate access.
  3. Check if content providers are exported
    In the AndroidManifest.xml, locate all <provider> elements. For each, verify the android:exported attribute. Look for providers with android:exported="true" that should not be accessible to other apps.
    Affected if Content providers are set to android:exported="true" without proper justification for external access.
  4. Verify permission requirements on exported providers
    For each exported content provider, check if android:readPermission and/or android:writePermission are defined with a meaningful permission string (e.g., android:permission="com.shannon.rcs.READ_PROVIDER"). If these are missing or set to null, the provider is unprotected.
    Affected if Exported content providers lack android:readPermission or android:writePermission attributes, or these are set to null/empty.
  5. Confirm the vulnerability condition
    Review the combined state: if any ShannonRcs content provider has android:exported="true" AND lacks proper read/write permission definitions, the device is vulnerable to unauthorized local information disclosure.
    Affected if Exported content providers in ShannonRcs are accessible by any local application without requiring any specific permission.

A user is affected if the ShannonRcs component is present on their Android device AND its content providers are exported without proper readPermission/writePermission attributes defined in AndroidManifest.xml, allowing any installed app to access protected RCS data.

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

The fix requires reviewing and properly configuring the AndroidManifest.xml entries for ShannonRcs content providers - either by adding proper permission requirements (android:writePermission/android:readPermission) or by setting android:exported to false if the providers are meant for internal use only.

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,640
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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-2023-20923 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
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