CVE-2023-39398
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 · uneditedParameter verification vulnerability in the installd module. Successful exploitation of this vulnerability may cause sandbox files to be read and written without authorization.
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 parameter verification vulnerability in the installd module allows attackers to bypass sandbox restrictions, enabling unauthorized read and write access to sandboxed files. This is a classic authorization bypass via improper input validation in the installer daemon.
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= 11.0.1= 12.0.0= 12.0.1= 13.0.0= 2.0.0= 2.0.1= 2.1.0= 3.0.0= 3.1.0CVSS 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
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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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Check your HarmonyOS or EMUI versionGo to Settings > About Phone > Version on the device, or use 'getprop ro.build.version.emui' or 'getprop ro.build.version.harmonyos' via ADB shellAffected if The version matches 11.0.1, 12.0.0, 12.0.1, or 13.0.0 for EMUI, or 2.0.0, 2.0.1, 2.1.0, 3.0.0, or 3.1.0 for HarmonyOS
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Confirm installd module is presentCheck for the installd daemon process using 'ps -A | grep installd' or check for the installd binary at common system daemon paths via ADB shellAffected if The installd process or binary exists on the device, indicating the vulnerable module is present
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Verify sandboxed file access is possibleAttempt a test file operation through installd interface if you have root or diagnostic access, or review installd logs for parameter validation behaviorAffected if The installd module accepts file path parameters without proper sandbox verification, allowing access outside the expected sandbox boundaries
You are affected if your device runs HarmonyOS 2.0.0-3.1.0 or EMUI 11.0.1-13.0.0 and the installd module is active, as the vulnerability allows sandbox bypass via improper parameter validation.
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 vendor patches for the installd module immediately. If no patch exists, implement strict parameter validation and enforce sandboxing controls on file operations within the installd daemon.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-39398 — 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-2023-39398 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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