CVE-2019-9292 in Android
Summary
by MITRE
In the Activity Manager service, there is a possible information disclosure due to a confused deputy. This could lead to local disclosure of current foreground process with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation. Product: AndroidVersions: Android-10Android ID: A-115384617
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/12/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-9292 resides within the Activity Manager service of Android operating systems, specifically affecting Android 10 and earlier versions. This represents a significant security flaw that stems from a confused deputy problem, where a malicious actor can exploit the service's improper handling of inter-process communication to gain unauthorized access to sensitive information. The vulnerability manifests as an information disclosure issue that allows local attackers to extract details about the currently foreground process without requiring any additional privileges or user interaction, making it particularly dangerous in environments where multiple applications operate concurrently.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability lies in the Activity Manager's failure to properly validate and authenticate inter-process communication requests. When applications attempt to interact with the Activity Manager service, the system should enforce strict access controls to prevent unauthorized information retrieval. However, the confused deputy scenario occurs when a legitimate service process incorrectly handles requests from untrusted sources, allowing malicious code to masquerade as a legitimate application and gain access to foreground process information. This flaw operates at the system level within Android's security architecture, specifically impacting the service's ability to distinguish between authorized and unauthorized access attempts.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it provides attackers with critical insights into the current application state and user activities. By accessing foreground process information, adversaries can potentially determine which applications are actively running, their respective permissions, and other behavioral characteristics that may aid in subsequent exploitation attempts. This information can serve as a foundation for more sophisticated attacks, including privilege escalation, targeted phishing campaigns, or exploitation of other vulnerabilities within the same application stack. The lack of user interaction requirements means that this vulnerability can be exploited automatically, making it particularly dangerous in environments where applications run continuously or where automatic background processes are common.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2019-9292 should focus on implementing proper access control mechanisms within the Activity Manager service and ensuring that all inter-process communication is properly authenticated and validated. System administrators and developers should ensure that Android devices are updated to versions that contain the appropriate patches addressing this confused deputy scenario. Additionally, implementing application sandboxing and privilege separation techniques can help reduce the potential impact of such vulnerabilities. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-284, which addresses improper access control, and maps to ATT&CK technique T1068, which covers local privilege escalation through service abuse. Organizations should also consider implementing monitoring solutions that can detect anomalous access patterns to system services and establish regular security assessments to identify similar confused deputy vulnerabilities within their Android environments.