CVE-2025-20730
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 preloader, there is a possible escalation of privilege due to an insecure default value. 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: ALPS10068463; Issue ID: MSV-4141.
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 local privilege escalation vulnerability exists in the preloader component where an insecure default value allows a user who already has System privileges to escalate to higher privileges. No user interaction is required for exploitation. The issue stems from a weak default configuration in the bootloader preloader.
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= 4.0= 2024q1= 13.0= 14.0= 15.0= 16.0= 21.02.0= 23.05.0CVSS 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
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/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.
-
Identify the preloader componentLocate the bootloader preloader component in your system. On Android, check /bootloader/ or /vendor/boot/ partitions. On Yocto/OpenWRT, check /boot or the flash layout for preloader binaries.Affected if The preloader binary or component is present in the system.
-
Verify product version matches affected rangeCheck your installed OS/firmware version. For Android: check ro.build.version.release or /system/build.prop. For Yocto: check /etc/os-release or the image version. For OpenWRT: check /etc/openwrt_version. For RDK-B: check the firmware version string.Affected if The installed version equals exactly: Android 13.0, 14.0, 15.0, or 16.0; Yocto 4.0; OpenWRT 21.02.0 or 23.05.0; RDK-B 2024q1.
-
Confirm System-level privileges existVerify the presence of accounts or processes running with System-level privileges. On Android, check for root access or system-level services via 'id' command or process list.Affected if An attacker already has System user privileges on the device.
-
Inspect preloader configuration for insecure defaultsExamine any configuration files, device tree blobs, or bootloader parameters that the preloader uses during boot. Look for weak or permissive default values in the boot configuration.Affected if The preloader uses an insecure default configuration value that can be exploited for privilege escalation.
You are affected if your device runs one of the exact listed versions AND contains the preloader component with an exploitable insecure default configuration, AND an attacker already has System-level access.
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 patch ALPS10068463 to replace the insecure default value in the preloader component. Verify the patch in a test environment before production deployment.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 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 $4,224.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-20730 — 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-2025-20730 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