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AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2025-20671

HIGH · 7.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-05-05
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
72/100
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 thermal, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a race condition. This could lead to local escalation of privilege if a malicious actor has already obtained the System privilege. User interaction is not needed for exploitation. Patch ID: ALPS09698599; Issue ID: MSV-3228.

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 · high confidence

This is a race condition vulnerability in the thermal subsystem that leads to an out-of-bounds write. An attacker who already has System-level privileges can exploit this to escalate to higher privileges (likely root) without any user interaction required.

MitigationApply vendor patch ALPS09698599 to fix the race condition in the thermal driver. Since exploitation requires System privilege and the patch is available, prioritize deployment to all affected devices.

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:= 14.0= 15.0

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
High
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Verify Android version
    Check system settings under 'About phone' or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' in adb shell. Confirm the exact version is 14.0 or 15.0.
    Affected if The device runs Android 14.0 or 15.0 exactly. Versions outside this range are not affected.
  2. Confirm thermal subsystem is active
    Check for presence of thermal zones by examining /sys/class/thermal/ directory or running 'ls /sys/class/thermal/thermal_zone*' in adb shell. Also verify thermal driver modules are loaded via 'lsmod' or check /proc/modules.
    Affected if Thermal zones exist and the thermal driver is loaded and operational, making the vulnerable code path reachable.
  3. Check for patch ALPS09698599
    Query the kernel or vendor patch level. Run 'getprop ro.vendor.patch.level' or 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' in adb shell. Cross-reference with vendor documentation or thermal driver source to confirm ALPS09698599 is included.
    Affected if The installed patch level does not include ALPS09698599 for the thermal driver, meaning the race condition vulnerability remains unfixed.
  4. Verify System privilege access
    Confirm the threat model: this vulnerability requires already having System-level privileges to exploit. Check which processes or apps hold the 'android.permission.SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW' or run under the system server (uid 1000) context.
    Affected if An attacker already with System-level privileges exists on the device, enabling them to reach the vulnerable thermal driver code path.

The device is affected if it runs Android 14.0 or 15.0, has an active thermal subsystem, and lacks the ALPS09698599 patch, with an attacker already holding System-level privileges able to trigger the race condition.

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

Apply vendor patch ALPS09698599 to fix the race condition in the thermal driver. Since exploitation requires System privilege and the patch is available, prioritize deployment to all affected devices.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence
  1. Contact your device OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) to verify if a security update containing Patch ID ALPS09698599 (Issue ID MSV-3228) has been released for your device
  2. Check your device manufacturer's security bulletin or contact their support for the specific patch availability
  3. Apply the OEM security update once available - this patch addresses the out-of-bounds write vulnerability in the MediaTek thermal driver
  4. Verify the device is running the patched version through system settings or by contacting the OEM
Caveat This is a vendor-specific patch delivered through OEM security updates rather than a general Android version upgrade; users must rely on their device manufacturer's security patch release schedule

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

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing12.0 h
  • Review / QA6.0 h
30.0 hours of engineering $5,120
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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-2025-20671 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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