CVE-2021-1901 in Snapdragon Consumer IOT
Summary
by MITRE • 07/13/2021
Possible buffer over-read due to lack of length check while flashing meta images in Snapdragon Consumer IOT, Snapdragon Industrial IOT, Snapdragon Mobile, Snapdragon Voice & Music, Snapdragon Wearables
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/16/2021
This vulnerability represents a critical buffer over-read condition that can occur during the flashing process of meta images on various Qualcomm Snapdragon platforms. The flaw stems from insufficient input validation and length checking mechanisms within the firmware flashing infrastructure, specifically affecting devices utilizing Snapdragon Consumer IOT, Snapdragon Industrial IOT, Snapdragon Mobile, Snapdragon Voice & Music, and Snapdragon Wearables product lines. The vulnerability manifests when the system attempts to process meta image data without proper bounds checking, potentially allowing an attacker to craft malicious input that exceeds allocated buffer boundaries.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the firmware flashing utility failing to validate the length of incoming meta image data before attempting to copy or process it into fixed-size buffers. This omission creates a scenario where an attacker can provide oversized data payloads that overwrite adjacent memory regions, potentially leading to unpredictable behavior including system crashes, arbitrary code execution, or information disclosure. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it exists within the flashing mechanism itself, which typically operates with elevated privileges and access to critical system components. According to CWE classification, this represents a variant of CWE-121, stack-based buffer overflow, though in this case the overflow occurs in a read operation rather than write operation context.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple system instability as it provides potential attack vectors for adversaries seeking to compromise IoT and mobile devices. Attackers could leverage this flaw to execute malicious code during firmware updates, potentially gaining persistent access to devices or disrupting their normal operation. The vulnerability's presence across multiple Snapdragon product lines increases its attack surface significantly, affecting everything from consumer wearables to industrial IoT deployments. From an adversarial perspective, this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.005 for command and scripting interpreter, where an attacker might use the buffer over-read to establish a foothold for further exploitation. The privilege escalation potential is particularly dangerous as firmware flashing operations typically require elevated permissions, making successful exploitation potentially catastrophic for device security.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on implementing comprehensive input validation and bounds checking mechanisms within the firmware flashing infrastructure. Device manufacturers should ensure that all meta image processing routines include proper length verification before buffer operations, implementing defensive programming practices that prevent data overflow conditions. The recommended approach involves validating input data lengths against maximum expected buffer sizes and implementing proper error handling for malformed inputs. Additionally, runtime protections such as stack canaries, address space layout randomization, and memory protection mechanisms should be employed to detect and prevent exploitation attempts. Regular firmware updates and security patches should be deployed to address this vulnerability across affected product lines, with particular attention to the industrial and IoT deployments where the impact could be most severe. System administrators should also implement monitoring solutions to detect anomalous flashing behavior that might indicate exploitation attempts.