CVE-2016-5343 in Android
Summary
by MITRE
drivers/soc/qcom/qdsp6v2/voice_svc.c in the QDSP6v2 Voice Service driver for the Linux kernel 3.x, as used in Qualcomm Innovation Center (QuIC) Android contributions for MSM devices and other products, allows attackers to cause a denial of service (memory corruption) or possibly have unspecified other impact via a write request, as demonstrated by a voice_svc_send_req buffer overflow.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/22/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-5343 resides within the QDSP6v2 Voice Service driver component of the Linux kernel version 3.x, specifically in the drivers/soc/qcom/qdsp6v2/voice_svc.c file. This driver serves as a critical interface for voice communication services on Qualcomm MSM (Mobile Station Modem) devices, which are widely deployed in Android smartphones and tablets. The affected Qualcomm Innovation Center (QuIC) Android contributions represent a significant portion of mobile device firmware implementations, making this vulnerability particularly impactful across the mobile ecosystem. The QDSP6v2 driver operates at a low level within the kernel space, managing voice service requests and communication between the application processor and the digital signal processor responsible for audio processing.
The technical flaw manifests as a buffer overflow vulnerability within the voice_svc_send_req function, which processes write requests from user-space applications. When an attacker submits a malformed write request containing excessive data, the driver fails to properly validate the buffer size before copying data into a fixed-size buffer. This classic buffer overflow condition occurs because the implementation does not enforce bounds checking on the incoming data length, allowing an attacker to write beyond the allocated memory boundaries. The vulnerability specifically affects the handling of voice service requests where the driver expects a certain amount of data but receives more than anticipated, causing memory corruption that can overwrite adjacent memory locations and potentially lead to arbitrary code execution or system instability.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple denial of service conditions, as demonstrated by the potential for unspecified other impacts. A remote attacker capable of sending crafted write requests to the voice service driver could trigger memory corruption that results in system crashes, reboot loops, or more severe consequences including privilege escalation. The vulnerability's exploitation potential is enhanced by the fact that it operates within kernel space, meaning successful exploitation could provide attackers with elevated privileges and access to sensitive system resources. The memory corruption could manifest as stack smashing, heap corruption, or data structure overwrites that compromise the integrity of the kernel's voice service subsystem. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-121, which describes stack-based buffer overflow conditions, and may also relate to CWE-122 for heap-based buffer overflows, both of which are fundamental weaknesses in memory management.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2016-5343 should focus on immediate patching of affected kernel versions, with particular attention to the Qualcomm MSM device drivers and Android kernel implementations. System administrators and device manufacturers should prioritize applying security updates that include proper bounds checking and input validation within the voice_svc_send_req function. The fix typically involves implementing strict size validation before buffer operations and using kernel-safe string handling functions that prevent buffer overflows. Additionally, runtime protections such as stack canaries, address space layout randomization, and kernel address space layout randomization should be enabled to make exploitation more difficult. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability relates to privilege escalation techniques and denial of service tactics, as attackers could leverage this flaw to gain system-level access or disrupt voice communication services. The vulnerability also demonstrates the importance of secure coding practices in kernel drivers, particularly regarding buffer management and input validation, which aligns with defensive security measures outlined in various cybersecurity frameworks including NIST SP 800-53 and ISO 27001 controls for secure system development and maintenance.