CVE-2019-14040 in Snapdragon Auto
Summary
by MITRE
Using memory after being freed in qsee due to wrong implementation can lead to unexpected behavior such as execution of unknown code in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Consumer IOT, Snapdragon Industrial IOT, Snapdragon IoT, Snapdragon Mobile, Snapdragon Voice & Music, Snapdragon Wearables in APQ8009, APQ8017, APQ8053, APQ8096AU, APQ8098, MDM9150, MDM9206, MDM9207C, MDM9607, MDM9640, MDM9650, MSM8905, MSM8909W, MSM8917, MSM8920, MSM8937, MSM8940, MSM8953, MSM8996AU, MSM8998, QCS605, QM215, SDA660, SDA845, SDM429, SDM429W, SDM439, SDM450, SDM630, SDM632, SDM636, SDM660, SDM845, SDX20, SDX24, SM8150, SXR1130
If you want to get the best quality for vulnerability data then you always have to consider VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/07/2020
This vulnerability represents a classic use-after-free condition in the Qualcomm Secure Execution Environment qsee component, which operates as a trusted execution environment within various Snapdragon chipsets. The flaw stems from improper memory management where the system continues to reference memory locations after they have been deallocated, creating potential attack vectors for privilege escalation and code execution. The vulnerability affects a broad spectrum of Qualcomm automotive, mobile, and IoT platforms, including the APQ8009, APQ8017, APQ8053, APQ8096AU, APQ8098, MDM9150, MDM9206, MDM9207C, MDM9607, MDM9640, MDM9650, MSM8905, MSM8909W, MSM8917, MSM8920, MSM8937, MSM8940, MSM8953, MSM8996AU, MSM8998, QCS605, QM215, SDA660, SDA845, SDM429, SDM429W, SDM439, SDM450, SDM630, SDM632, SDM636, SDM660, SDM845, SDX20, SDX24, SM8150, and SXR1130 chipsets. The technical implementation error occurs within the qsee memory management subsystem where the secure execution environment fails to properly validate memory references before subsequent access, allowing malicious code to potentially exploit this condition to execute arbitrary instructions with elevated privileges. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-416 which describes the use of freed memory condition, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068 which covers privilege escalation through exploitation of software vulnerabilities. The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe as it could enable attackers to bypass security boundaries of the secure execution environment, potentially allowing unauthorized access to sensitive data, execution of malicious code, or complete system compromise. Attackers could leverage this flaw to escalate privileges from normal user contexts to privileged execution levels within the secure environment, thereby undermining the fundamental security model of the trusted execution environment. The affected platforms span multiple generations of Qualcomm processors used in automotive systems, mobile devices, industrial IoT deployments, and consumer electronics, making this vulnerability particularly concerning from a supply chain security perspective. The exploitation of this vulnerability could result in persistent backdoors, data exfiltration, or complete device takeover, as the secure execution environment typically handles sensitive operations such as cryptographic key storage, secure boot processes, and trusted application execution. Organizations should prioritize patching affected devices and implementing runtime monitoring to detect potential exploitation attempts, while also considering the broader implications for automotive cybersecurity given the vulnerability's presence in Snapdragon Auto platforms. The memory corruption nature of this vulnerability means that exploitation could potentially be achieved through various attack vectors including malformed input processing, network communication handling, or even physical access scenarios depending on the specific implementation details within the affected chipsets.