CVE-2025-48565 in Android
Summary
by MITRE • 12/08/2025
In multiple locations, there is a possible way to bypass the cross profile intent filter due to a logic error in the code. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/21/2025
This vulnerability resides within the Android operating system's cross-profile intent filtering mechanism, representing a critical security flaw that allows unauthorized privilege escalation. The issue stems from a logic error in the code that governs how intents are processed across different user profiles or application contexts. When an application attempts to launch an intent that should be restricted based on profile boundaries, the flawed logic fails to properly enforce these cross-profile restrictions, creating an unintended pathway for malicious actors to access resources or execute code within contexts they should not normally be permitted to reach.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the improper handling of intent resolution processes that occur when applications attempt to communicate across profile boundaries. The logic error specifically manifests in the validation checks that should occur before allowing an intent to be delivered to a target application within a different profile context. These checks fail to properly verify the source profile of the intent or the target profile's access permissions, resulting in a bypass of the intended security boundaries. This flaw operates at the system level where profile isolation mechanisms are supposed to prevent one user profile from accessing another profile's applications or data, yet the code path allows for such unauthorized access through carefully crafted intent invocations.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is particularly severe as it enables local privilege escalation without requiring any additional execution privileges or user interaction. An attacker with access to a lower-privileged profile can exploit this flaw to gain elevated privileges within the system, potentially accessing sensitive data, modifying system configurations, or executing arbitrary code with higher privileges. The lack of user interaction requirement makes this vulnerability especially dangerous as it can be exploited automatically by malicious applications or scripts without any manual intervention from the user. This characteristic aligns with attack patterns described in the attack technique matrix under T1068 for local privilege escalation and T1548 for abuse of privileges, where the vulnerability essentially provides a mechanism for bypassing the system's built-in access control mechanisms.
The security implications extend beyond simple privilege escalation to encompass potential data leakage and system compromise. When cross-profile intent filtering is bypassed, it can enable access to applications, data, or services that are specifically isolated for security reasons between different user profiles or application contexts. This could allow attackers to read sensitive information from other profiles, manipulate application states, or even gain access to system-level resources that should remain isolated. The vulnerability affects multiple locations within the system, suggesting a systemic issue rather than a localized problem, which increases the potential attack surface and makes remediation more complex.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on implementing proper profile boundary enforcement and strengthening the intent resolution process. System administrators and security teams should prioritize immediate patching of affected Android versions, as the vulnerability represents a fundamental flaw in the operating system's security architecture. Additional protective measures include implementing enhanced monitoring for suspicious intent filtering activities, reviewing application permissions and profile access controls, and potentially applying runtime restrictions on cross-profile intent delivery. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper access control implementation and highlights how subtle logic errors in security-critical code can lead to severe privilege escalation vulnerabilities. Organizations should also consider implementing application whitelisting or sandboxing mechanisms as additional protective layers to limit the potential impact of such vulnerabilities. The flaw underscores the necessity of thorough code reviews and security testing, particularly for system components that handle inter-process communication and access control decisions, as described in the CWE taxonomy under weakness categories related to improper access control and logic errors in security-critical code paths.