CVE-2025-21098
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 OpenHarmony v5.0.2 and prior versions allow a local attacker cause information leak through out-of-bounds read bypass permission check.
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 confidenceOpenHarmony v5.0.2 and prior versions contain an out-of-bounds read vulnerability that allows a local attacker to bypass permission checks and access sensitive information beyond authorized boundaries.
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>= 4.1.0, <= 5.0.2CVSS 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.
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Determine OpenHarmony versionQuery the system for the installed OpenHarmony version using system info commands or check version files in the system partition. Common methods include checking /proc/version, system settings, or vendor-provided version utilities.Affected if The installed version falls within the range >= 4.1.0 and <= 5.0.2
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Verify local access exposureReview system access controls to determine if untrusted local users or processes can interact with the affected component. Check user account configurations and local service permissions.Affected if Untrusted local users or processes have access to the system or specific services where the vulnerability exists
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Identify permission-bypass attack surfaceExamine which system services, APIs, or modules handle permission checks and sensitive data access. Review configuration files related to local service bindings and inter-process communication permissions.Affected if Services with permission-checked functionality are exposed to local attackers or run with elevated privileges accessible to local users
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Monitor for unauthorized memory accessReview system logs, audit logs, and any available memory access monitoring tools for signs of out-of-bounds read attempts or unusual memory access patterns that could indicate exploitation.Affected if Logs show anomalous memory access patterns or attempts to read beyond allocated buffers in affected components
A user is affected if their OpenHarmony installation version is between 4.1.0 and 5.0.2 inclusive AND untrusted local entities can access the system or services where the permission-bypass vulnerability exists.
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.
dbcve · scopedUpgrade to a patched version of OpenHarmony if available; otherwise, restrict local access and monitor for unauthorized memory access attempts.
OpenHarmony 5.0.3 or later
- 1. Identify the current OpenHarmony version in use by checking system settings or running version check commands
- 2. Plan upgrade to OpenHarmony version 5.0.3 or later, as this version addresses the out-of-bounds read vulnerability
- 3. Review OpenHarmony upgrade documentation for your specific device/product implementation
- 4. Perform upgrade following standard OpenHarmony update procedures for your platform
- 5. Verify the upgrade was successful and confirm the new version number
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing5.0 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 $4,752.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-21098 — 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-2025-21098 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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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