dbcve.org
AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2023-21231

HIGH · 7.8 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 →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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 getIntentForButton of ButtonManager.java, there is a possible way for an unprivileged application to start a non-exported or permission-protected activity due to a missing permission check. This could lead to local escalation of privilege 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

A missing permission check in the getIntentForButton function of ButtonManager.java allows unprivileged applications to launch non-exported or permission-protected activities, enabling local privilege escalation without user interaction or additional execution privileges.

MitigationApply the vendor patch from the relevant Android security bulletin; the fix requires adding proper permission verification in ButtonManager.java to validate the caller's identity before allowing activity launches.

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:= 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
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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. Verify Android version is 13.0
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Android version or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB
    Affected if The Android version listed is exactly 13.0 (not 12.x, 14.x, or later) AND no security patches have been applied after the CVE disclosure date
  2. Check security patch level
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Security patch level or run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' via ADB
    Affected if The security patch level is earlier than the June 2023 Android security bulletin or is not set to a date that includes the fix for CVE-2023-21231
  3. Confirm ButtonManager framework presence
    Check for presence of ButtonManager service by examining /system/framework/ directory or checking if 'button_manager' service is listed in 'adb shell dumpsys' output
    Affected if The Android framework includes ButtonManager and the vulnerable getIntentForButton function is present in the build
  4. Check for unpatched ButtonManager.java implementation
    Decompile or examine the framework JAR at /system/framework/framework.jar and locate ButtonManager.java - verify the getIntentForButton method lacks permission verification (look for missing enforceCallingPermission or similar checks)
    Affected if The getIntentForButton function in ButtonManager does not contain permission validation code before allowing activity launches

A device is affected if it runs Android 13.0 without the June 2023 or later Android security patch and the ButtonManager getIntentForButton function lacks permission checks.

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 patch from the relevant Android security bulletin; the fix requires adding proper permission verification in ButtonManager.java to validate the caller's identity before allowing activity launches.

Recommended fix High confidence

Android 13.0 with July 2023 security patch level or later

  1. Ensure your Android device receives and installs the July 2023 security patch update or later for Android 13.0
  2. Go to Settings > System > Security update on your device to check for available updates
  3. Install any pending security updates
  4. Verify the device is running the July 2023 security patch level or later under Settings > System > About Phone > Android version
Caveat Security patches typically have minimal to no breaking changes; they are designed to fix vulnerabilities without altering functionality

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

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,720
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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-2023-21231 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