CVE-2016-8473 in Android
Summary
by MITRE
An information disclosure vulnerability in the STMicroelectronics driver could enable a local malicious application to access data outside of its permission levels. This issue is rated as Moderate because it first requires compromising a privileged process. Product: Android. Versions: Kernel-3.10. Android ID: A-31795790.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/27/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-8473 represents a significant information disclosure flaw within the STMicroelectronics driver component of Android systems running kernel version 3.10. This weakness resides in the kernel-level driver implementation that governs hardware interactions, specifically affecting devices manufactured by STMicroelectronics. The vulnerability operates at a fundamental level where proper access controls fail to prevent unauthorized data access, creating a pathway for malicious applications to bypass normal permission boundaries and potentially access sensitive information beyond their intended scope.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and improper access control mechanisms within the driver's memory management and data handling processes. When a local malicious application attempts to interact with the affected driver, the system fails to properly validate the application's privileges or restrict access to memory regions that should be protected from unauthorized access. This flaw allows the application to potentially read or manipulate data that falls outside its normal permission levels, effectively creating a privilege escalation vector. The vulnerability specifically manifests when the driver processes requests from user-space applications without sufficient validation of the requesting process's security context, leading to potential information leakage.
The operational impact of CVE-2016-8473 is substantial despite requiring an initial compromise of a privileged process to exploit. Once an attacker gains access to a privileged process, they can leverage this vulnerability to extract sensitive data that would normally be protected by the system's security model. This information disclosure can include kernel memory contents, device-specific configuration data, or other sensitive information that could be used for further attacks or to understand the system's internal workings. The moderate severity rating reflects the fact that while the vulnerability requires an existing compromise, the information that can be accessed once exploited is highly valuable for advanced persistent threat actors. The vulnerability affects Android devices that utilize STMicroelectronics hardware components, particularly those running kernel version 3.10, making it relevant to a significant portion of the Android ecosystem during that time period.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-200, which describes improper output neutralization for logs, and CWE-284, which covers improper access control mechanisms. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this issue relates to T1068, which covers 'Exploitation for Privilege Escalation', and T1005, covering 'Data from Local System'. The attack pattern involves an adversary first compromising a privileged process, then leveraging this access to exploit the driver vulnerability and extract sensitive information. Mitigation strategies include applying the latest security patches from STMicroelectronics and Android, implementing proper kernel memory protection mechanisms, and ensuring that all driver components undergo rigorous security testing and code review processes before deployment. Organizations should also consider implementing additional monitoring and detection capabilities to identify potential exploitation attempts and maintain up-to-date threat intelligence on similar vulnerabilities in hardware drivers and kernel components.