CVE-2026-58949 in Android
Summary
by MITRE • 11/02/2026
In parseMetaData of StagefrightMetadataRetriever.cpp, there is a possible denial of service due to a stack buffer overflow. This could lead to remote denial of service with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/02/2026
The vulnerability resides within the parseMetaData function in the StagefrightMetadataRetriever.cpp component, which is part of Android's multimedia framework responsible for extracting metadata from media files. This specific flaw manifests as a stack buffer overflow, indicating that the application writes more data to a fixed-size buffer on the call stack than it can hold. Such memory corruption errors typically arise when input validation or bounds checking mechanisms are insufficient or entirely absent during the processing of external inputs. In this context, the malformed media file serves as the attack vector, allowing an attacker to overwrite adjacent memory locations on the stack, potentially overwriting return addresses or function pointers with maliciously crafted data.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is a remote denial of service that does not require additional execution privileges for exploitation. Because the flaw occurs during metadata parsing, which often happens automatically when media files are accessed or previewed by system services or applications, user interaction is generally not required to trigger the exploit. An attacker can craft a maliciously formatted audio or video file containing oversized metadata fields and distribute it through various channels such as messaging apps, email attachments, or web pages that auto-play media content. When a victim opens or views this file, the Stagefright framework attempts to parse the metadata, triggering the buffer overflow condition. This leads to immediate application crashes or system instability, effectively denying service to legitimate users who rely on these multimedia functionalities for communication and entertainment purposes.
From a technical classification perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-121, which describes stack-based buffer overflows where data is written beyond the allocated boundary of a stack variable. The exploitation technique corresponds to ATT&CK tactic Tactic 14: Impact, specifically subtechnique T1499 Endpoint Denial of Service, as the primary goal is to disrupt availability rather than gain unauthorized access or execute arbitrary code. While buffer overflows can sometimes lead to remote code execution if control flow hijacking is successful, in this instance, the immediate consequence observed and reported is a denial of service scenario. This suggests that either the exploitability for code execution was mitigated by compiler protections such as stack canaries or address space layout randomization, or the specific nature of the overflow only results in memory corruption severe enough to crash the process without allowing further exploitation steps.
Mitigation strategies should focus on both immediate patching and long-term defensive coding practices. The primary remediation is for vendors to release a security update that patches the Stagefright framework by implementing strict bounds checking before copying metadata into stack buffers. Developers must ensure that all input derived from external sources, particularly media files which are inherently untrusted, undergo rigorous validation regarding size limits relative to allocated buffer space. Additionally, enabling compiler-based protections such as Stack Canaries, Data Execution Prevention, and Address Space Layout Randomization can significantly raise the bar for exploitation attempts by making it difficult for attackers to predict memory layouts or execute injected code. System administrators should also ensure that devices are updated with the latest security patches to close this specific gap in the multimedia processing pipeline, thereby preventing remote denial of service attacks via malicious media files.