CVE-2023-21625
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 · uneditedInformation disclosure in Network Services due to buffer over-read while the device receives DNS response.
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 confidenceA buffer over-read vulnerability in the device's network services allows information disclosure when processing incoming DNS responses. An attacker sending specially crafted DNS responses can read beyond the allocated buffer boundary, potentially exposing sensitive memory contents.
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 versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall 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
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the chipset modelCheck the device hardware specifications, bootloader output, or system information to determine if the chipset is one of the following: Apq8009, Apq8017, Apq8037, Ar8031, Csra6620, Csra6640, Mdm9205, or Mdm9250Affected if The chipset matches any of the listed Qualcomm model numbers
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Locate the firmware versionCheck the device's firmware revision, boot logs, or system firmware information. This is typically found in /proc/version, boot messages, or the device's web UI under status or system informationAffected if The firmware version is present and corresponds to any of the affected Qualcomm chipsets listed
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Verify DNS service is enabledCheck if the device's DNS resolver or network service is active. This can be done by reviewing running processes, network configuration, or service status. Look for DNS-related daemons or servicesAffected if DNS services or network response handling is enabled on the device
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Confirm network exposureDetermine if the device processes DNS responses from external sources. Check network interfaces, DNS server configuration, and whether the device accepts DNS traffic on any network interfaceAffected if The device accepts and processes DNS responses from network sources
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Review DNS handling configurationInspect the device's network configuration files, DNS client settings, or firewall rules to see how DNS responses are processed. Look for any custom DNS handling code or configurationAffected if Custom or built-in DNS response processing is configured on the device
The device is affected if it uses any of the listed Qualcomm chipset models and has DNS/network services enabled to process incoming DNS responses.
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 vendor-supplied patches or firmware updates addressing the buffer over-read in DNS response handling. If no patch is available, restrict network access to trusted DNS servers or implement DNS response validation at the network perimeter.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing4.0 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 $4,512.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-21625 — 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-2023-21625 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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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.
- 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