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AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2025-48579

HIGH · 8.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-03-02
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
89/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges 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 multiple functions of MediaProvider.java, there is a possible external storage write permission bypass due to a confused deputy. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is not 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 confused deputy vulnerability in Android's MediaProvider.java allows bypassing external storage write permission checks, enabling a local attacker to write to external storage without proper authorization. The issue affects multiple functions where permission validation can be circumvented, leading to local privilege escalation.

MitigationApply the vendor-provided security patch for CVE-2025-48579 to MediaProvider.java, which should include proper permission delegation checks and validation of caller identity to prevent confused deputy attacks.

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= 16.0

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/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. Check Android OS version
    Run 'adb shell getprop ro.build.version.release' or go to Settings > About Phone > Android version
    Affected if Version is 14.0, 15.0, or 16.0 exactly
  2. Check security patch level
    Run 'adb shell getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' to see the installed patch date
    Affected if Patch level is earlier than the vendor fix for this CVE
  3. Verify MediaProvider is present
    Run 'adb shell pm list packages -f | grep MediaProvider' to confirm the MediaProvider package exists
    Affected if Package com.android.providers.media is installed and handles external storage requests
  4. Confirm external storage is enabled
    Run 'adb shell settings get global external_storage_enabled' to check if external storage access is permitted
    Affected if Value is 1 (external storage access is enabled)
  5. Check MediaProvider permissions
    Run 'adb shell dumpsys package com.android.providers.media' and inspect granted permissions in the output
    Affected if MediaProvider holds WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE or has permissions that can be bypassed for external storage writes

The device is affected if it runs Android 14.0, 15.0, or 16.0 with MediaProvider handling external storage and the security patch is unapplied.

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 the vendor-provided security patch for CVE-2025-48579 to MediaProvider.java, which should include proper permission delegation checks and validation of caller identity to prevent confused deputy attacks.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Android 17 or later, or apply May 2025 Android Security Patch Level

  1. Check the current Android security patch level on the device in Settings > About Phone > Security Patch Level
  2. Ensure the device has received the latest Android security update. Go to Settings > System > Software Update and install any available updates
  3. If updates are not available from the device manufacturer, consider upgrading to a newer Android version (Android 17 or later) if the device hardware supports it
  4. Verify the vulnerability is remediated by confirming the security patch level is May 2025 or later (or the latest available from the device vendor)
Caveat Upgrading Android version may remove support for older apps or cause compatibility issues with device-specific features

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
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2025-48579 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