CVE-2023-21203
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 startWpsPbcInternal of sta_iface.cpp, there is a possible out of bounds read due to improper input validation. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with System execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.Product: AndroidVersions: Android-13Android ID: A-262246082
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 confidenceAn out-of-bounds read vulnerability exists in the startWpsPbcInternal function of sta_iface.cpp within Android's Wi-Fi framework. The function fails to properly validate input, allowing an attacker with System-level privileges to read memory beyond allocated boundaries, potentially leading to local privilege escalation.
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= 13.0CVSS 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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Confirm Android version is 13.0Check the device Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB shellAffected if The displayed version is exactly 13.0 (note the '=' in the affected version range indicates exact version match)
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Verify Wi-Fi framework component existsCheck for the presence of the Wi-Fi service by running 'dumpsys wifi' via ADB shell to confirm the Wi-Fi subsystem is availableAffected if Wi-Fi framework is present and accessible on the device
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Confirm WPS functionality is presentRun 'dumpsys wifi | grep -i wps' via ADB to check if WPS-related features are exposed by the Wi-Fi serviceAffected if WPS functionality is exposed by the Wi-Fi framework on the device
The device is affected only if it is running Android version 13.0 exactly and has the Wi-Fi framework with WPS functionality available.
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.
dbcve · scopedApply the Android security patch for July 2023 or later, which contains the fix for this WPS input validation vulnerability in the Wi-Fi component.
Android 14 or Android 13 security update containing the fix for A-262246082
- Check the Android Security Bulletin for the month containing the fix for Android ID A-262246082
- Verify your device's current Android version and security patch level in Settings > About Phone > Android version
- If on Android 13.0, upgrade to Android 14 (which includes the fix) OR ensure your device receives the latest Android 13 security update containing the fix for this vulnerability
- Apply system updates through Settings > System > Software Update to receive the security patch
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing6.0 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 $4,096.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-21203 — 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-2023-21203 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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