CVE-2023-21236
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 aoc_service_set_read_blocked of aoc.c, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a missing bounds check. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with System execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.Product: AndroidVersions: Android kernelAndroid ID: A-270148537References: 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 · high confidenceA missing bounds check in the aoc_service_set_read_blocked function in aoc.c (part of Android kernel) allows an out-of-bounds write, enabling local privilege escalation from System-level to higher privileges without user interaction.
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 dataall versionsCVSS 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 device and kernelCheck if running Google Android (uname -a shows 'android' kernel) and note the kernel versionAffected if Device runs Android and kernel version predates the A-270148537 patch (check Android Security Bulletin for patch date)
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Check if aoc driver is presentLook for aoc driver in /sys/module/ or /dev/ for aoc device nodes, or check kernel config for CONFIG_ION and aoc-related modules; this driver handles the Qualcomm Always-On Processor coprocessorAffected if The aoc driver (aoc.ko or built into kernel) is loaded and the /dev/aoc or /dev/aoc_* device nodes exist
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Identify if System-level access is possibleDetermine current process privileges - the vulnerability requires attacker to already have System-level (uid 1000) access on the deviceAffected if Attacker already has System-level (not root) privileges and can execute code on the device
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Check for the vulnerable functionInspect the aoc driver binary/module for the aoc_service_set_read_blocked function; if the driver is available as a module, check module version; otherwise, this requires kernel source code comparison or the Android Security Bulletin patch statusAffected if The aoc driver code lacks bounds validation in aoc_service_set_read_blocked function (vulnerable code present)
Device is affected if running Android with a vulnerable kernel (pre-patch for A-270148537), the Qualcomm aoc driver is enabled, and the attacker has System-level (uid 1000) code execution capability.
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.
From vendor dataApply the Android kernel security patch for A-270148537 which adds proper bounds validation in the aoc driver; this is delivered through Android monthly security bulletins.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing10.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-21236 — 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-2023-21236 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
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