dbcve.org
AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2023-21230

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-08-14
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 onAccessPointChanged of AccessPointPreference.java, there is a possible way for unprivileged apps to receive a broadcast about WiFi access point change and its BSSID or SSID due to a precondition check failure. This could lead to local information disclosure with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.

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

In Android's AccessPointPreference.java, a precondition check failure in the onAccessPointChanged method allows unprivileged applications to receive broadcasts containing WiFi access point change events, exposing sensitive BSSID and SSID information. This occurs because the broadcast is sent without verifying that the receiving app has the appropriate permissions to access this location-adjacent network information.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied Android framework patch which adds proper permission validation before broadcasting WiFi access point change events to ensure only authorized system components or apps with correct privileges receive BSSID/SSID data.

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:= 11.0= 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
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. Check Android version
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB shell
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 11.0 or 13.0 (these are the affected versions listed)
  2. Check security patch level
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Security patch level, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' via ADB shell
    Affected if The security patch level is older than the June 2023 Android Security Bulletin (the month this vulnerability was patched)
  3. Verify broadcast receiver permissions
    Review app manifests for apps registering to receive android.net.wifi.STATE_CHANGE or similar WiFi-related broadcasts without proper location permissions
    Affected if Any unprivileged app (one without ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION) is found to be receiving WiFi access point change broadcasts containing BSSID/SSID data

A device is affected if it runs Android 11.0 or 13.0 and has not received the June 2023 Android security update, allowing unprivileged apps to intercept WiFi BSSID/SSID broadcast events.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the vendor-supplied Android framework patch which adds proper permission validation before broadcasting WiFi access point change events to ensure only authorized system components or apps with correct privileges receive BSSID/SSID data.

Recommended fix High confidence

Android 11.0 and 13.0 devices with August 2023 Security Patch Level or later

  1. 1. Check your device's current Android Security Patch Level by going to Settings > About Phone > Security Patch Level
  2. 2. Apply the August 2023 Android Security Update or later. Go to Settings > System > System Update > Check for Updates
  3. 3. Install any available security updates until the Security Patch Level shows August 2023 or later
  4. 4. Verify the update was applied successfully by confirming the Security Patch Level reflects August 2023 or newer

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
21.0 hours of engineering $3,680
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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-2023-21230 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
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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