CVE-2021-1933 in Snapdragon Auto
Summary
by MITRE • 09/09/2021
UE assertion is possible due to improper validation of invite message with SDP body in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer IOT, Snapdragon Industrial IOT, Snapdragon Wearables
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/11/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2021-1933 represents a critical assertion failure within Qualcomm's Snapdragon automotive and IoT product lines, specifically affecting systems that process SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) invite messages containing SDP (Session Description Protocol) bodies. This flaw manifests as an improper validation mechanism that fails to adequately sanitize or verify the structure and content of incoming invite messages, potentially leading to unauthorized system state changes or application crashes. The vulnerability impacts multiple Snapdragon product categories including automotive systems, compute platforms, connectivity solutions, consumer IoT devices, industrial IoT deployments, and wearable technologies, indicating a widespread exposure across Qualcomm's embedded ecosystem.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability lies in the insufficient input validation routines within the SIP processing stack of Snapdragon devices. When a malformed or maliciously crafted invite message containing an SDP body is received, the system's assertion mechanisms trigger prematurely, causing the application or system component to terminate unexpectedly. This assertion failure typically occurs during the parsing or validation phase of the SDP content, where the system assumes certain conditions are met without proper verification. The flaw can be exploited through network-based attacks where an attacker sends a specially crafted SIP invite message to a vulnerable device, potentially causing denial of service conditions or, in more sophisticated scenarios, enabling further exploitation vectors.
The operational impact of CVE-2021-1933 extends beyond simple service disruption, particularly within automotive and industrial IoT environments where system reliability is paramount. In automotive applications, this vulnerability could potentially affect vehicle communication systems, infotainment platforms, or telematics services that rely on SIP for voice and video communication. For industrial IoT deployments, the assertion failure might compromise critical infrastructure communication systems or monitoring platforms. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-248, which addresses "Uncaught Exception" conditions, and potentially relates to CWE-129, "Improper Validation of Array Index," as the assertion failure may stem from improper bounds checking during SDP parsing operations. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability could be leveraged as part of initial access or execution phases, particularly in environments where SIP communication is utilized for device management or control purposes.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2021-1933 should prioritize immediate firmware updates from Qualcomm, as the vendor has released patches addressing this specific validation flaw. Organizations should implement network segmentation and access controls to limit exposure of vulnerable systems to untrusted networks, particularly within automotive and industrial environments where these devices may be directly exposed to external communication channels. Network monitoring solutions should be configured to detect anomalous SIP traffic patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts, while system administrators should implement robust logging and alerting mechanisms to identify assertion failures. Additionally, implementing input validation controls at network boundaries and deploying intrusion detection systems capable of recognizing malformed SDP content can provide additional layers of defense. The vulnerability highlights the importance of proper exception handling in embedded systems and demonstrates how seemingly minor input validation gaps can lead to significant operational disruptions in critical infrastructure environments.