CVE-2023-40644
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 Messaging, there is a possible missing permission check. This could lead to local information disclosure with no additional execution privileges needed
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 confidenceThis is a missing permission check vulnerability in a Messaging component (likely Android). An attacker with local device access can exploit the lack of permission validation to read sensitive messaging information without requiring any elevated 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 data= 11.0= 12.0CVSS 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
- 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Check Android versionGo to Settings > About Phone > Android version or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB shellAffected if The installed version is 11.0 or 12.0 exactly (or matching the affected range if further clarified)
-
Identify Messaging componentList installed packages containing 'messaging' or 'sms' using 'pm list packages | grep -i messaging' via ADB shell, or check for the default SMS application in Settings > Apps > Default apps > SMS appAffected if A Messaging application is installed and set as the default SMS handler
-
Verify permission enforcement on Messaging interfacesUse a security audit tool or static analysis to inspect the Messaging component's code for permission validation on exposed content providers or intent handlers. Check if READ_SMS or related permissions are checked before returning dataAffected if The Messaging component lacks permission checks on its data interfaces (content providers, intents, or broadcast receivers)
-
Test for unauthorized messaging data accessCreate a minimal test app without SMS permissions and attempt to query the Messaging component's content provider URIs (such as content://sms/ or content://mms/) via an ADB shell command like 'content query --uri content://sms/'Affected if The query returns SMS/MMS data without requiring SMS permissions, indicating the vulnerability is present
A user is affected if their device runs Android 11.0 or 12.0 AND has a Messaging component that exposes data without validating READ_SMS or equivalent permissions.
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 dataImplement proper permission checks (e.g., enforce READ_SMS, READ_CONTACTS, or custom permission validation) on all exposed Messaging component interfaces before returning any user data.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-40644 — 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-2023-40644 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