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AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2023-35680

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-09-11
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 multiple locations, there is a possible way to import contacts belonging to other users due to a confused deputy. 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 · moderate confidence

A confused deputy vulnerability in the contact import functionality across multiple locations allows users to import contacts belonging to other users, resulting in unauthorized local information disclosure. The flaw stems from improper authorization validation during contact import operations, where the system fails to verify that the requesting user has legitimate access to the target contacts.

MitigationImplement proper authorization checks to verify user ownership/permission before allowing contact imports, and ensure user context is correctly validated at each import location to prevent cross-user contact access.

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= 12.0= 12.1= 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 and note the exact version number
    Affected if The version is 11.0, 12.0, 12.1, or 13.0 exactly (matching one of the affected versions listed)
  2. Identify contact import capability
    Open the Contacts application, look for an import/export or add contacts option that includes import functionality, or check Settings > Accounts > Add Account for contacts sync options
    Affected if Contact import or sync from external sources is available on the device
  3. Verify contacts application source
    Check if the contacts app is the default system Contacts app (Settings > Apps > Default apps > Messaging/Contacts should show the system app, not a third-party app)
    Affected if The system Contacts app is in use rather than a manufacturer-specific or third-party replacement

A device is affected if it runs Android version 11.0, 12.0, 12.1, or 13.0 and contains the standard contact import functionality, since the authorization flaw exists in the Android framework's contact import operations for these versions.

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

Implement proper authorization checks to verify user ownership/permission before allowing contact imports, and ensure user context is correctly validated at each import location to prevent cross-user contact access.

Recommended fix High confidence

Android 13.0 with latest security patch level (December 2023 or later)

  1. Check your current Android version by going to Settings > About Phone > Android version
  2. Go to Settings > System > System Update (or Settings > Software Update)
  3. Check for and install any available system updates
  4. For Android 13.0 devices, ensure you have the latest security patch level installed (December 2023 or later security update)
  5. If your device runs Android 11.0, 12.0, or 12.1, consider upgrading to a device that supports Android 13.0 or later to receive security updates
Caveat Devices running Android 11.0, 12.0, and 12.1 may no longer receive security updates; upgrading to a newer Android version may be required

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

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation12.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
28.0 hours of engineering $4,880
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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-2023-35680 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