VDB-413507 · CVE-2026-20542 · GCVE-0-2026-20542

MediaTek MT8796 apusys use after free

CVSS Meta Temp Score CVSS is a standardized scoring system to determine possibilities of attacks. The Temp Score considers temporal factors like disclosure, exploit and countermeasures. The unique Meta Score calculates the average score of different sources to provide a normalized scoring system.	Current Exploit Price (≈) Our analysts are monitoring exploit markets and are in contact with vulnerability brokers. The range indicates the observed or calculated exploit price to be seen on exploit markets. A good indicator to understand the monetary effort required for and the popularity of an attack.	CTI Interest Score Our Cyber Threat Intelligence team is monitoring different web sites, mailing lists, exploit markets and social media networks. The CTI Interest Score identifies the interest of attackers and the security community for this specific vulnerability in real-time. A high score indicates an elevated risk to be targeted for this vulnerability.
7.8	$0-$5k	1.05-

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability has been found in MediaTek MT2718, MT6878, MT6897, MT6899, MT6989, MT6991, MT8171, MT8188, MT8189, MT8196, MT8370, MT8371, MT8390, MT8391, MT8395, MT8678, MT8792, MT8793 and MT8796 and classified as very critical. The affected element is an unknown function of the component apusys. The manipulation leads to use after free. This vulnerability is uniquely identified as CVE-2026-20542. Local access is required to approach this attack. No exploit exists. To fix this issue, it is recommended to deploy a patch.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability, which was classified as very critical, has been found in MediaTek MT2718, MT6878, MT6897, MT6899, MT6989, MT6991, MT8171, MT8188, MT8189, MT8196, MT8370, MT8371, MT8390, MT8391, MT8395, MT8678, MT8792, MT8793 and MT8796. This issue affects an unknown part of the component apusys. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a use after free vulnerability. Using CWE to declare the problem leads to CWE-416. Referencing memory after it has been freed can cause a program to crash, use unexpected values, or execute code. Impacted is confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

In apusys, there is a possible memory corruption due to use after free. This could lead to local escalation of privilege if a malicious actor has already obtained the System privilege. User interaction is not needed for exploitation. Patch ID: ALPS11076799; Issue ID: MSV-8143.

It is possible to read the advisory at mediatek.com. The identification of this vulnerability is CVE-2026-20542 since 11/03/2025. The exploitation is known to be easy. Attacking locally is a requirement. Additional levels of successful authentication are required for exploitation. The technical details are unknown and an exploit is not publicly available. The pricing for an exploit might be around USD $0-$5k at the moment (estimation calculated on 10/05/2026).

Applying the patch ALPS11076799 is able to eliminate this problem.

Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.

Productinfo

Type

Chip Software

Vendor

MediaTek

Name

License

commercial

CPE 2.3info

CPE 2.2info

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 8.2
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 7.8

VulDB Base Score: 8.2
VulDB Temp Score: 7.8
VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv2info

AV	AC	Au	C	I	A
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳

Vector	Complexity	Authentication	Confidentiality	Integrity	Availability
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock

VulDB Base Score: 🔒
VulDB Temp Score: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: Use after free
CWE: CWE-416 / CWE-119
CAPEC: 🔒
ATT&CK: 🔒

Physical: Partially
Local: Yes
Remote: No

Availability: 🔒
Status: Not defined

EPSS Score: 🔒
EPSS Percentile: 🔒

Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔒

0-Day	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Today	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock

Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Patch
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔒

Patch: ALPS11076799

Timelineinfo

11/03/2025 CVE reserved
10/05/2026 +335 days Advisory disclosed
10/05/2026 +0 days VulDB entry created
10/05/2026 +0 days VulDB entry last update

Sourcesinfo

Advisory: mediatek.com
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2026-20542 (🔒)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2026-20542
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-413507

Entryinfo

Created: 10/05/2026 04:37
Changes: 10/05/2026 04:37 (54)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103