CVE-2015-8318 in Huawei
Summary
by MITRE
Heap-based buffer overflow in the HIFI driver in Huawei P8 smartphones with software GRA-TL00 before GRA-TL00C01B230, GRA-CL00 before GRA-CL00C92B230, GRA-CL10 before GRA-CL10C92B230, GRA-UL00 before GRA-UL00C00B230, and GRA-UL10 before GRA-UL10C00B230, and Mate S smartphones with software CRR-TL00 before CRR-TL00C01B160SP01, CRR-UL00 before CRR-UL00C00B160, and CRR-CL00 before CRR-CL00C92B161 allows attackers to cause a denial of service (system crash) or gain privileges via a crafted application, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-8319.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/12/2022
The heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-8318 affects Huawei smartphones running specific software versions including P8 models with GRA-TL00 series firmware and Mate S devices with CRR-TL00 series software. This vulnerability resides within the HIFI driver component, which handles high-fidelity audio processing functionality in these mobile devices. The flaw represents a critical security weakness that could be exploited by malicious actors to compromise system integrity and potentially escalate privileges.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves improper bounds checking within the heap memory management of the HIFI driver. When processing crafted audio data or malformed input from applications, the driver fails to validate buffer sizes adequately, leading to memory corruption that can overwrite adjacent heap memory regions. This type of vulnerability falls under CWE-121 heap-based buffer overflow, where insufficient validation allows attackers to write beyond allocated buffer boundaries. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it affects core system components that handle audio processing, making it accessible through normal application execution paths.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple system crashes to potentially enable privilege escalation attacks. An attacker could craft a malicious application that triggers the buffer overflow condition, causing the device to crash or potentially allowing execution of arbitrary code with elevated privileges. This represents a significant risk to user data and device security, as successful exploitation could lead to complete system compromise. The vulnerability affects multiple Huawei device models and firmware versions, indicating a widespread issue within the affected product lines.
Security practitioners should consider this vulnerability in the context of the broader ATT&CK framework, specifically under privilege escalation and defense evasion techniques. The attack surface includes legitimate applications that may inadvertently trigger the vulnerable code path through audio processing operations. Mitigation strategies should focus on immediate firmware updates and patches provided by Huawei to address the heap overflow conditions. Additionally, organizations should implement application whitelisting policies and monitor for suspicious audio processing activities that could indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability highlights the importance of robust input validation in system-level drivers and demonstrates how seemingly benign audio processing functionality can become a critical security risk when proper memory management practices are not implemented.