AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2025-36907

HIGH · 7.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-09-04
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
73/100
Remediation priority · Elevated

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 draw_surface_image() of abl/android/lib/draw/draw.c, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a heap buffer overflow. This could lead to local escalation of privilege via USB fastboot, after a bootloader unlock, with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is needed for exploitation.

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

A heap buffer overflow in the draw_surface_image() function in Android bootloader code (abl/android/lib/draw/draw.c) allows an attacker with physical USB access and a pre-unlocked bootloader to perform an out-of-bounds write, potentially achieving local privilege escalation.

MitigationApply vendor-provided security patches for the Android bootloader (ABL) component; ensure bootloader remains locked unless explicit security review is performed.

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:all versions

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
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/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. Confirm device uses Android bootloader (ABL)
    Identify if the device runs Android and uses the ABL bootloader. Most Android devices from主流 manufacturers use ABL. Check via `fastboot devices` when the device is in fastboot mode, or check device specifications for 'ABL' or 'Android Bootloader' in boot chain documentation.
    Affected if Device runs Google Android OS with ABL bootloader present (this includes most Android devices)
  2. Check bootloader lock status
    Boot into fastboot mode (power + volume down on most devices) and run `fastboot oem device-info`. Look for 'Device unlocked: yes' or similar indication. Alternatively, some devices show a warning screen at boot if unlocked.
    Affected if Bootloader is in 'unlocked' or 'unlocked' state (the vulnerability requires a pre-unlocked bootloader to be exploitable)
  3. Identify ABL version
    In fastboot mode, run `fastboot oem version` or `fastboot getvar version` (commands vary by manufacturer). Alternatively, extract and inspect the boot.img or abl.elf binary from the device firmware for version strings.
    Affected if Any version of ABL bootloader present (the advisory states 'all versions' are affected)
  4. Verify physical USB access possibility
    Assess whether the device could be accessed physically via USB ports. Check if USB debugging is enabled (Settings > Developer Options > USB debugging) or if the device accepts USB connections in fastboot mode.
    Affected if Physical USB access to the device is possible (this is a prerequisite for the attack vector)

A user is affected if they run Android with an ABL bootloader that is in an unlocked state and an attacker could gain physical USB access to the device.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply vendor-provided security patches for the Android bootloader (ABL) component; ensure bootloader remains locked unless explicit security review is performed.

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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Scan for this in your stack

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dbcve dependency scanner

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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-2025-36907 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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