CVE-2023-3781
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 · uneditedthere is a possible use-after-free write due to improper locking. 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 · moderate confidenceA use-after-free write vulnerability in which improper locking leads to a race condition, allowing an attacker to write to freed memory and achieve local privilege escalation without requiring additional execution privileges or 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
- 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Confirm the device runs Google AndroidCheck the device settings under 'About Phone' > 'Device name' or use 'getprop ro.build.fingerprint' via ADB to verify the OS is Google AndroidAffected if The device is not running a Google Android-based firmware (e.g., custom ROMs from other sources)
-
Check the installed Android security patch levelNavigate to Settings > About Phone > Security Patch Level, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' via ADB to retrieve the installed patch dateAffected if The security patch level is earlier than the patch that addresses CVE-2023-3781 (the specific patch date varies by device model and carrier)
-
Verify the kernel version for AndroidRun 'uname -r' via ADB or check Settings > About Phone > Kernel Version to identify the kernel versionAffected if The kernel version corresponds to an unpatched build (for reference, compare against publicly disclosed fixed kernel versions for this CVE)
-
Confirm the race condition trigger condition is presentThis is a kernel-level vulnerability in the locking mechanism; check if the device has not received vendor-specific updates addressing use-after-free race conditions in kernel componentsAffected if The device firmware has not been updated to include the fix for improper locking that causes the use-after-free condition
A Google Android device is affected if it is running any version without the vendor security patch that addresses the improper locking use-after-free race condition (CVE-2023-3781).
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 available security patches for the affected software to correct the locking mechanism; if patches are unavailable, consider compensating controls such as restricting local access or deploying application sandboxing.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation4.0 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 $4,256.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-3781 — 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-2023-3781 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
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