CVE-2019-5303 in Huawei
Summary
by MITRE
There are two denial of service vulnerabilities on some Huawei smartphones. An attacker may send specially crafted TD-SCDMA messages from a rogue base station to the affected devices. Due to insufficient input validation of two values when parsing the messages, successful exploit may cause device abnormal. This is 2 out of 2 vulnerabilities. Different than CVE-2020-5302. Affected products are: ALP-AL00B: earlier than 9.1.0.333(C00E333R2P1T8) ALP-L09: earlier than 9.1.0.300(C432E4R1P9T8) ALP-L29: earlier than 9.1.0.315(C636E5R1P13T8) BLA-L29C: earlier than 9.1.0.321(C636E4R1P14T8), earlier than 9.1.0.330(C432E6R1P12T8), earlier than 9.1.0.302(C635E4R1P13T8) Berkeley-AL20: earlier than 9.1.0.333(C00E333R2P1T8) Berkeley-L09: earlier than 9.1.0.350(C10E3R1P14T8), earlier than 9.1.0.351(C432E5R1P13T8), earlier than 9.1.0.350(C636E4R1P13T8) Charlotte-L09C: earlier than 9.1.0.311(C185E4R1P11T8), earlier than 9.1.0.345(C432E8R1P11T8) Charlotte-L29C: earlier than 9.1.0.325(C185E4R1P11T8), earlier than 9.1.0.335(C636E3R1P13T8), earlier than 9.1.0.345(C432E8R1P11T8), earlier than 9.1.0.336(C605E3R1P12T8) Columbia-AL10B: earlier than 9.1.0.333(C00E333R1P1T8) Columbia-L29D: earlier than 9.1.0.350(C461E3R1P11T8), earlier than 9.1.0.350(C185E3R1P12T8), earlier than 9.1.0.350(C10E5R1P14T8), earlier than 9.1.0.351(C432E5R1P13T8) Cornell-AL00A: earlier than 9.1.0.333(C00E333R1P1T8) Cornell-L29A: earlier than 9.1.0.328(C185E1R1P9T8), earlier than 9.1.0.328(C432E1R1P9T8), earlier than 9.1.0.330(C461E1R1P9T8), earlier than 9.1.0.328(C636E2R1P12T8) Emily-L09C: earlier than 9.1.0.336(C605E4R1P12T8), earlier than 9.1.0.311(C185E2R1P12T8), earlier than 9.1.0.345(C432E10R1P12T8) Emily-L29C: earlier than 9.1.0.311(C605E2R1P12T8), earlier than 9.1.0.311(C636E7R1P13T8), earlier than 9.1.0.311(C432E7R1P11T8) Ever-L29B: earlier than 9.1.0.311(C185E3R3P1), earlier than 9.1.0.310(C636E3R2P1), earlier than 9.1.0.310(C432E3R1P12) HUAWEI Mate 20: earlier than 9.1.0.131(C00E131R3P1) HUAWEI Mate 20 Pro: earlier than 9.1.0.310(C185E10R2P1) HUAWEI Mate 20 RS: earlier than 9.1.0.135(C786E133R3P1) HUAWEI Mate 20 X: earlier than 9.1.0.135(C00E133R2P1) HUAWEI P20: earlier than 9.1.0.333(C00E333R1P1T8) HUAWEI P20 Pro: earlier than 9.1.0.333(C00E333R1P1T8) HUAWEI P30: earlier than 9.1.0.193 HUAWEI P30 Pro: earlier than 9.1.0.186(C00E180R2P1) HUAWEI Y9 2019: earlier than 9.1.0.220(C605E3R1P1T8) HUAWEI nova lite 3: earlier than 9.1.0.305(C635E8R2P2) Honor 10 Lite: earlier than 9.1.0.283(C605E8R2P2) Honor 8X: earlier than 9.1.0.221(C461E2R1P1T8) Honor View 20: earlier than 9.1.0.238(C432E1R3P1) Jackman-L22: earlier than 9.1.0.247(C636E2R4P1T8) Paris-L21B: earlier than 9.1.0.331(C432E1R1P2T8) Paris-L21MEB: earlier than 9.1.0.331(C185E4R1P3T8) Paris-L29B: earlier than 9.1.0.331(C636E1R1P3T8) Sydney-AL00: earlier than 9.1.0.212(C00E62R1P7T8) Sydney-L21: earlier than 9.1.0.215(C432E1R1P1T8), earlier than 9.1.0.213(C185E1R1P1T8) Sydney-L21BR: earlier than 9.1.0.213(C185E1R1P2T8) Sydney-L22: earlier than 9.1.0.258(C636E1R1P1T8) Sydney-L22BR: earlier than 9.1.0.258(C636E1R1P1T8) SydneyM-AL00: earlier than 9.1.0.228(C00E78R1P7T8) SydneyM-L01: earlier than 9.1.0.215(C782E2R1P1T8), earlier than 9.1.0.213(C185E1R1P1T8), earlier than 9.1.0.270(C432E3R1P1T8) SydneyM-L03: earlier than 9.1.0.217(C605E1R1P1T8) SydneyM-L21: earlier than 9.1.0.221(C461E1R1P1T8), earlier than 9.1.0.215(C432E4R1P1T8) SydneyM-L22: earlier than 9.1.0.259(C185E1R1P2T8), earlier than 9.1.0.220(C635E1R1P2T8), earlier than 9.1.0.216(C569E1R1P1T8) SydneyM-L23: earlier than 9.1.0.226(C605E2R1P1T8) Yale-L21A: earlier than 9.1.0.154(C432E2R3P2), earlier than 9.1.0.154(C461E2R2P1), earlier than 9.1.0.154(C636E2R2P1) Honor 20: earlier than 9.1.0.152(C00E150R5P1) Honor Magic2: earlier than 10.0.0.187 Honor V20: earlier than 9.1.0.234(C00E234R4P3)
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/03/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-5303 represents a significant security concern affecting multiple Huawei smartphone models, specifically those utilizing TD-SCDMA cellular communication protocols. This vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation within the device's cellular stack when processing specially crafted TD-SCDMA messages transmitted from rogue base stations. The flaw manifests in two distinct instances where critical data validation mechanisms fail, leading to potential denial of service conditions that can cause device instability or complete system failure. These vulnerabilities are classified under CWE-20, which represents "Improper Input Validation," a fundamental weakness that allows malicious inputs to disrupt normal application behavior. The attack vector leverages the cellular network infrastructure itself, making it particularly concerning as it does not require physical access to the device or complex exploitation techniques.
The technical impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption, as it can result in complete device crash or reboot cycles that effectively deny users access to their mobile communications capabilities. This type of attack aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.001, which encompasses "Network Denial of Service" attacks targeting communication protocols. The affected devices operate on various firmware versions, with specific build numbers indicating the vulnerable states. The vulnerability affects a broad range of Huawei models including Mate series, P series, nova series, Honor series, and various other smartphone variants, demonstrating the widespread nature of the issue across different product lines. The TD-SCDMA protocol implementation in these devices lacks proper bounds checking and input sanitization, allowing attackers to craft malicious messages that trigger buffer overflows or other memory corruption issues during message parsing.
The operational implications of CVE-2019-5303 are substantial, particularly in environments where mobile connectivity is critical for business operations or personal communication. Users may experience unexpected device shutdowns, loss of network connectivity, or complete system crashes when exposed to malicious TD-SCDMA signals. This vulnerability is particularly dangerous in scenarios where attackers can position rogue base stations in proximity to target devices, such as in public spaces, parking lots, or areas where cellular traffic is high. The attack requires minimal technical expertise to execute, as it only requires the ability to transmit specially crafted TD-SCDMA messages, making it a potentially widespread threat. The vulnerability can be exploited by adversaries using readily available equipment to create rogue base stations that broadcast malicious signals to nearby Huawei devices. This represents a significant risk to user privacy and device integrity, as the attacks can be conducted remotely without requiring physical access to the target devices. Mitigation efforts should focus on firmware updates from Huawei, which address the input validation deficiencies in the TD-SCDMA message processing components, as well as network-level detection and prevention measures that can identify and block malicious TD-SCDMA signals. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of robust input validation in mobile network stack implementations and highlights the need for comprehensive security testing of cellular communication protocols in mobile devices.