Published August 01, 2016 | Updated October 21, 2016
The Android Security Bulletin contains details of security vulnerabilities affecting Android devices. Alongside the bulletin, we have released a security update to Nexus devices through an over-the-air (OTA) update. The Nexus firmware images have also been released to the Google Developer site. Security Patch Levels of August 05, 2016 or later address these issues. Refer to the documentation to learn how to check the security patch level.
Partners were notified about the issues described in the bulletin on July 06, 2016 or earlier. Where applicable, source code patches for these issues have been released to the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) repository. This bulletin also includes links to patches outside of AOSP.
The most severe of these issues is a Critical security vulnerability that could enable remote code execution on an affected device through multiple methods such as email, web browsing, and MMS when processing media files. The severity assessment is based on the effect that exploiting the vulnerability would possibly have on an affected device, assuming the platform and service mitigations are disabled for development purposes or if successfully bypassed.
We have had no reports of active customer exploitation or abuse of these newly reported issues. Refer to the Android and Google service mitigations section for details on the Android security platform protections and service protections such as SafetyNet, which improve the security of the Android platform.
We encourage all customers to accept these updates to their devices.
Announcements
- Bulletin revised to correct CVE-2016-3856 to CVE-2016-2060.
- This bulletin has two security patch level strings to provide Android
partners with the flexibility to move more quickly to fix a subset of
vulnerabilities that are similar across all Android devices. See Common questions and answers for
additional information:
- 2016-08-01: Partial security patch level string. This security patch level string indicates that all issues associated with 2016-08-01 (and all previous security patch level strings) are addressed.
- 2016-08-05: Complete security patch level string. This security patch level string indicates that all issues associated with 2016-08-01 and 2016-08-05 (and all previous security patch level strings) are addressed.
- Supported Nexus devices will receive a single OTA update with the August 05, 2016 security patch level.
Android and Google service mitigations
This is a summary of the mitigations provided by the Android security platform and service protections such as SafetyNet. These capabilities reduce the likelihood that security vulnerabilities could be successfully exploited on Android.
- Exploitation for many issues on Android is made more difficult by enhancements in newer versions of the Android platform. We encourage all users to update to the latest version of Android where possible.
- The Android Security team actively monitors for abuse with Verify Apps and SafetyNet, which are designed to warn users about Potentially Harmful Applications. Verify Apps is enabled by default on devices with Google Mobile Services, and is especially important for users who install applications from outside of Google Play. Device rooting tools are prohibited within Google Play, but Verify Apps warns users when they attempt to install a detected rooting application—no matter where it comes from. Additionally, Verify Apps attempts to identify and block installation of known malicious applications that exploit a privilege escalation vulnerability. If such an application has already been installed, Verify Apps will notify the user and attempt to remove the detected application.
- As appropriate, Google Hangouts and Messenger applications do not automatically pass media to processes such as Mediaserver.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank these researchers for their contributions:
- Abhishek Arya, Oliver Chang, and Martin Barbella of Google Chrome Security Team: CVE-2016-3821, CVE-2016-3837
- Adam Donenfeld et al. of Check Point Software Technologies Ltd.: CVE-2016-2504
- Chiachih Wu (@chiachih_wu), Mingjian Zhou (@Mingjian_Zhou), and Xuxian Jiang of C0RE Team: CVE-2016-3844
- Chiachih Wu (@chiachih_wu), Yuan-Tsung Lo ([email protected]), and Xuxian Jiang of C0RE Team: CVE-2016-3857
- David Benjamin and Kenny Root of Google: CVE-2016-3840
- Dawei Peng (Vinc3nt4H) of Alibaba Mobile Security Team: CVE-2016-3822
- Di Shen (@returnsme) of KeenLab (@keen_lab), Tencent: CVE-2016-3842
- Dianne Hackborn of Google: CVE-2016-2497
- Dmitry Vyukov of Google Dynamic Tools team: CVE-2016-3841
- Gengjia Chen (@chengjia4574), pjf (weibo.com/jfpan) of IceSword Lab, Qihoo 360 Technology Co. Ltd.: CVE-2016-3852
- Guang Gong (龚广) (@oldfresher) of Alpha Team, Qihoo 360 Technology Co. Ltd.: CVE-2016-3834
- Kai Lu (@K3vinLuSec) of Fortinet's FortiGuard Labs: CVE-2016-3820
- Kandala Shivaram reddy, DS, and Uppi: CVE-2016-3826
- Mingjian Zhou (@Mingjian_Zhou), Chiachih Wu (@chiachih_wu), and Xuxian Jiang of C0RE Team: CVE-2016-3823, CVE-2016-3835, CVE-2016-3824, CVE-2016-3825
- Nathan Crandall (@natecray) of Tesla Motors Product Security Team: CVE-2016-3847, CVE-2016-3848
- Peng Xiao, Chengming Yang, Ning You, Chao Yang, and Yang song of Alibaba Mobile Security Group: CVE-2016-3845
- Peter Pi (@heisecode) of Trend Micro: CVE-2016-3849
- Qianwei Hu ([email protected]) of WooYun TangLab: CVE-2016-3846
- Qidan He (@flanker_hqd) of KeenLab (@keen_lab), Tencent: CVE-2016-3832
- Sharvil Nanavati of Google: CVE-2016-3839
- Shinjo Park (@ad_ili_rai) and Altaf Shaik of Security in Telecommunications: CVE-2016-3831
- Tom Rootjunky: CVE-2016-3853
- Vasily Vasiliev: CVE-2016-3819
- Weichao Sun (@sunblate) of Alibaba Inc.: CVE-2016-3827, CVE-2016-3828, CVE-2016-3829
- Wish Wu (吴潍浠) (@wish_wu) of Trend Micro Inc.: CVE-2016-3843
- Yongke Wang (@Rudykewang) of Tencent's Xuanwu LAB: CVE-2016-3836
We would like to thank Daniel Micay of Copperhead Security, Jeff Vander Stoep, and Yabin Cui of Google for their contribution of platform level updates to mitigate a class of vulnerabilities such as CVE-2016-3843. This mitigation is based on work by Brad Spengler of Grsecurity.
2016-08-01 security patch level—Security vulnerability details
In the sections below, we provide details for each of the security vulnerabilities that apply to the 2016-08-01 patch level. There is a description of the issue, a severity rationale, and a table with the CVE, associated references, severity, updated Nexus devices, updated AOSP versions (where applicable), and date reported. When available, we will link the public change that addressed the issue to the bug ID, such as the AOSP change list. When multiple changes relate to a single bug, additional references are linked to numbers following the bug ID.
Remote code execution vulnerability in Mediaserver
A remote code execution vulnerability in Mediaserver could enable an attacker using a specially crafted file to cause memory corruption during media file and data processing. This issue is rated as Critical due to the possibility of remote code execution within the context of the Mediaserver process. The Mediaserver process has access to audio and video streams, as well as access to privileges that third-party apps could not normally access.
The affected functionality is provided as a core part of the operating system and there are multiple applications that allow it to be reached with remote content, most notably MMS and browser playback of media.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3819 | A-28533562 | Critical | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | May 2, 2016 |
| CVE-2016-3820 | A-28673410 | Critical | All Nexus | 6.0, 6.0.1 | May 6, 2016 |
| CVE-2016-3821 | A-28166152 | Critical | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | Google internal |
Remote code execution vulnerability in libjhead
A remote code execution vulnerability in libjhead could enable an attacker using a specially crafted file to execute arbitrary code in the context of an unprivileged process. This issue is rated as High due to the possibility of remote code execution in applications that use this library.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3822 | A-28868315 | High | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | Google internal |
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in Mediaserver
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in Mediaserver could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of a privileged process. This issue is rated as High because it could be used to gain local access to elevated capabilities, which are not normally accessible to a third-party application.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3823 | A-28815329 | High | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | May 17, 2016 |
| CVE-2016-3824 | A-28816827 | High | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | May 17, 2016 |
| CVE-2016-3825 | A-28816964 | High | All Nexus | 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | May 17, 2016 |
| CVE-2016-3826 | A-29251553 | High | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | Jun 9, 2016 |
Denial of service vulnerability in Mediaserver
A denial of service vulnerability in Mediaserver could enable an attacker using a specially crafted file to cause a device hang or reboot. This issue is rated as High due to the possibility of a temporary remote denial of service.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3827 | A-28816956 | High | All Nexus | 6.0.1 | May 16, 2016 |
| CVE-2016-3828 | A-28835995 | High | All Nexus | 6.0, 6.0.1 | May 17, 2016 |
| CVE-2016-3829 | A-29023649 | High | All Nexus | 6.0, 6.0.1 | May 27, 2016 |
| CVE-2016-3830 | A-29153599 | High | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | Google internal |
Denial of service vulnerability in system clock
A denial of service vulnerability in the system clock could enable a remote attacker to crash the device. This issue is rated as High due to the possibility of a temporary remote denial of service.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3831 | A-29083635 | High | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | May 31, 2016 |
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in framework APIs
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the framework APIs could enable a local malicious application to bypass operating system protections that isolate application data from other applications. This issue is rated as Moderate because it could be used to gain access to data that is outside of the application’s permission levels.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3832 | A-28795098 | Moderate | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | May 15, 2016 |
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in Shell
An elevation of privilege in the Shell could enable a local malicious application to bypass device constraints such as user restrictions. This issue is rated as Moderate because it is a local bypass of user permissions.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3833 | A-29189712 [2] | Moderate | All Nexus | 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | Google internal |
Information disclosure vulnerability in OpenSSL
An information disclosure vulnerability in OpenSSL could allow a local malicious application to access data outside of its permission levels. This issue is rated as Moderate because it could be used to access sensitive data without permission.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-2842 | A-29060514 | None* | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1 | Mar 29, 2016 |
* Supported Nexus devices that have installed all available updates are not affected by this vulnerability
Information disclosure vulnerability in camera APIs
An information disclosure vulnerability in the camera APIs could allow a local malicious application to access data structures outside of its permission levels. This issue is rated as Moderate because it could be used to access sensitive data without permission.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3834 | A-28466701 | Moderate | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | Apr 28, 2016 |
Information disclosure vulnerability in Mediaserver
An information disclosure vulnerability in Mediaserver could allow a local malicious application to access data outside of its permission levels. This issue is rated as Moderate because it could be used to access sensitive data without permission.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3835 | A-28920116 | Moderate | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | May 23, 2016 |
Information disclosure vulnerability in SurfaceFlinger
An information disclosure vulnerability in the SurfaceFlinger service could enable a local malicious application to access data outside of its permission levels. This issue is rated as Moderate because it could be used to access sensitive data without explicit user permission.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3836 | A-28592402 | Moderate | All Nexus | 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | May 4, 2016 |
Information disclosure vulnerability in Wi-Fi
An information disclosure vulnerability in Wi-Fi could allow a local malicious application to to access data outside of its permission levels. This issue is rated Moderate because it could be used to access sensitive data without permission.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3837 | A-28164077 | Moderate | All Nexus | 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | Google internal |
Denial of service vulnerability in system UI
A denial of service vulnerability in the system UI could enable a local malicious application to prevent 911 calls from a locked screen. This issue is rated as Moderate due to the possibility of a denial of service on a critical function.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3838 | A-28761672 | Moderate | All Nexus | 6.0, 6.0.1 | Google internal |
Denial of service vulnerability in Bluetooth
A denial of service vulnerability in Bluetooth could enable a local malicious application to prevent 911 calls from a Bluetooth device. This issue is rated as Moderate due to the possibility of a denial of service on a critical function.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3839 | A-28885210 | Moderate | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | Google internal |
2016-08-05 security patch level—Vulnerability details
In the sections below, we provide details for each of the security vulnerabilities that apply to the 2016-08-05 patch level. There is a description of the issue, a severity rationale, and a table with the CVE, associated references, severity, updated Nexus devices, updated AOSP versions (where applicable), and date reported. When available, we will link the public change that addressed the issue to the bug ID, like the AOSP change list. When multiple changes relate to a single bug, additional references are linked to numbers following the bug ID.
Remote code execution vulnerability in Qualcomm Wi-Fi driver
A remote code execution vulnerability in the Qualcomm Wi-Fi driver could enable a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as Critical due to the possibility of a local permanent device compromise.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2014-9902 | A-28668638 | Critical | Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2014 |
Remote code execution vulnerability in Conscrypt
A remote code execution vulnerability in Conscrypt could enable a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code within the context of a privileged process. This issue is rated as Critical due to the possibility of remote code execution.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3840 | A-28751153 | Critical | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | Google internal |
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in Qualcomm components
The table below contains security vulnerabilities affecting Qualcomm components, potentially including the bootloader, camera driver, character drive, networking, sound driver, and video driver.
The most severe of these issues is rated as Critical due to possibility that a local malicious application could execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel leading to a local permanent device compromise, which may require reflashing the operating system to repair the device.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2014-9863 | A-28768146 | Critical | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9864 | A-28747998 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 27, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9865 | A-28748271 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 27, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9866 | A-28747684 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9867 | A-28749629 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9868 | A-28749721 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9869 | A-28749728 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9870 | A-28749743 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9871 | A-28749803 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9872 | A-28750155 | High | Nexus 5 | Mar 31, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9873 | A-28750726 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9874 | A-28751152 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9875 | A-28767589 | High | Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9876 | A-28767796 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6, Nexus 6P, Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9877 | A-28768281 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9878 | A-28769208 | High | Nexus 5 | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9879 | A-28769221 | High | Nexus 5 | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9880 | A-28769352 | High | Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9881 | A-28769368 | High | Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9882 | A-28769546 | High | Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9883 | A-28769912 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9884 | A-28769920 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9885 | A-28769959 | High | Nexus 5 | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9886 | A-28815575 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9887 | A-28804057 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Jul 3, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9888 | A-28803642 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Aug 29, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9889 | A-28803645 | High | Nexus 5 | Oct 31, 2014 |
| CVE-2015-8937 | A-28803962 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 6, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2015 |
| CVE-2015-8938 | A-28804030 | High | Nexus 6 | Mar 31, 2015 |
| CVE-2015-8939 | A-28398884 | High | Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2015 |
| CVE-2015-8940 | A-28813987 | High | Nexus 6 | Apr 30, 2015 |
| CVE-2015-8941 | A-28814502 | High | Nexus 6, Nexus 7 (2013) | May 29, 2015 |
| CVE-2015-8942 | A-28814652 | High | Nexus 6 | Jun 30, 2015 |
| CVE-2015-8943 | A-28815158 | High | Nexus 5 | Sep 11, 2015 |
| CVE-2014-9891 | A-28749283 | Moderate | Nexus 5 | Mar 13, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9890 | A-28770207 | Moderate | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Jun 2, 2014 |
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in kernel networking component
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the kernel networking component could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as Critical due to the possibility of a local permanent device compromise, which may require reflashing the operating system to repair the device.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2015-2686 | A-28759139 | Critical | All Nexus | Mar 23, 2015 |
| CVE-2016-3841 | A-28746669 | Critical | All Nexus | Dec 3, 2015 |
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in Qualcomm GPU driver
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the Qualcomm GPU driver could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as Critical due to the possibility of a local permanent device compromise, which may require reflashing the operating system to repair the device.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-2504 | A-28026365
QC-CR#1002974 |
Critical | Nexus 5, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6, Nexus 6P, Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 5, 2016 |
| CVE-2016-3842 | A-28377352
QC-CR#1002974 |
Critical | Nexus 5X, Nexus 6, Nexus 6P | Apr 25, 2016 |
* The patch for this issue is not publicly available. The update is contained in the latest binary drivers for Nexus devices available from the Google Developer site.
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in Qualcomm performance component
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the Qualcomm performance component could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as Critical due to the possibility of a local permanent device compromise, which may require reflashing the operating system to repair the device.
Note: There is also a platform-level update in this bulletin under A-29119870 that is designed to mitigate this class of vulnerabilities.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3843 | A-28086229*
QC-CR#1011071 |
Critical | Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P | Apr 7, 2016 |
* The patch for this issue is not publicly available. The update is contained in the latest binary drivers for Nexus devices available from the Google Developer site.
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in kernel
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the kernel could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as Critical due to the possibility of a local permanent device compromise, which may require reflashing the operating system to repair the device.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3857 | A-28522518* | Critical | Nexus 7 (2013) | May 2, 2016 |
* The patch for this issue is not publicly available. The update is contained in the latest binary drivers for Nexus devices available from the Google Developer site.
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in kernel memory system
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the kernel memory system could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as High because it first requires compromising a privileged process.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2015-1593 | A-29577822 | High | Nexus Player | Feb 13, 2015 |
| CVE-2016-3672 | A-28763575 | High | Nexus Player | Mar 25, 2016 |
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in kernel sound component
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the kernel sound component could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as High because it first requires compromising a privileged process.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-2544 | A-28695438 | High | All Nexus | Jan 19, 2016 |
| CVE-2016-2546 | A-28694392 | High | Pixel C | Jan 19, 2016 |
| CVE-2014-9904 | A-28592007 | High | Nexus 5X, Nexus 6, Nexus 6P, Nexus 9, Nexus Player | May 4, 2016 |
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in kernel file system
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the kernel file system could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as High because it first requires compromising a privileged process.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2012-6701 | A-28939037 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 2, 2016 |
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in Mediaserver
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in Mediaserver could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of a privileged process. This issue is rated as High because it could be used to gain local access to elevated capabilities, which are not accessible to a third-party application.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3844 | A-28299517*
N-CVE-2016-3844 |
High | Nexus 9, Pixel C | Apr 19, 2016 |
* The patch for this issue is not publicly available. The update is contained in the latest binary drivers for Nexus devices available from the Google Developer site.
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in kernel video driver
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the kernel video driver could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as High because it first requires compromising a privileged process.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3845 | A-28399876* | High | Nexus 5 | Apr 20, 2016 |
* The patch for this issue is not publicly available. The update is contained in the latest binary drivers for Nexus devices available from the Google Developer site.
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in Serial Peripheral Interface driver
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the Serial Peripheral Interface driver could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as High because it first requires compromising a privileged process.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3846 | A-28817378* | High | Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P | May 17, 2016 |
* The patch for this issue is not publicly available. The update is contained in the latest binary drivers for Nexus devices available from the Google Developer site.
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in NVIDIA media driver
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the NVIDIA media driver could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as High because it first requires compromising a privileged process.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3847 | A-28871433*
N-CVE-2016-3847 |
High | Nexus 9 | May 19, 2016 |
| CVE-2016-3848 | A-28919417*
N-CVE-2016-3848 |
High | Nexus 9 | May 19, 2016 |
* The patch for this issue is not publicly available. The update is contained in the latest binary drivers for Nexus devices available from the Google Developer site.
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in ION driver
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the ION driver could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as High because it first requires compromising a privileged process.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3849 | A-28939740 | High | Pixel C | May 24, 2016 |
* The patch for this issue is not publicly available. The update is contained in the latest binary drivers for Nexus devices available from the Google Developer site.
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in Qualcomm bootloader
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the Qualcomm bootloader could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as High because it first requires compromising a privileged process.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3850 | A-27917291 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 28, 2016 |
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in kernel performance subsystem
Elevation of privilege vulnerabilities in the kernel performance subsystem could enable a local malicious application to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as High because of the kernel attack surface available for attackers to exploit.
Note: This is a platform level update designed to mitigate a class of vulnerabilities such as CVE-2016-3843 (A-28086229).
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3843 | A-29119870* | High | All Nexus | 6.0, 6.1 | Google internal |
* A patch for this issue is not publicly available. The update is contained in the latest binary drivers for Nexus devices available from the Google Developer site.
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in LG Electronics bootloader
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the LG Electronics bootloader could enable an attacker to execute arbitrary code within the context of the kernel. This issue is rated as High because it first requires compromising a privileged process.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3851 | A-29189941* | High | Nexus 5X | Google internal |
* The patch for this issue is not publicly available. The update is contained in the latest binary drivers for Nexus devices available from the Google Developer site.
Information disclosure vulnerability in Qualcomm components
The table below contains security vulnerabilities affecting Qualcomm components, potentially including the bootloader, camera driver, character driver, networking, sound driver and video driver.
The most severe of these issues is rated as High due to the possibility that a local malicious application could access data outside of its permission levels such as sensitive data without explicit user permission.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2014-9892 | A-28770164 | High | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Jun 2, 2014 |
| CVE-2015-8944 | A-28814213 | High | Nexus 6, Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2015 |
| CVE-2014-9893 | A-28747914 | Moderate | Nexus 5 | Mar 27, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9894 | A-28749708 | Moderate | Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9895 | A-28750150 | Moderate | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9896 | A-28767593 | Moderate | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9897 | A-28769856 | Moderate | Nexus 5 | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9898 | A-28814690 | Moderate | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Apr 30, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9899 | A-28803909 | Moderate | Nexus 5 | Jul 3, 2014 |
| CVE-2014-9900 | A-28803952 | Moderate | Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) | Aug 8, 2014 |
Information disclosure vulnerability in kernel scheduler
An information disclosure vulnerability in the kernel scheduler could enable a local malicious application to access data outside of its permission levels. This issue is rated as High because it could be used to access sensitive data without explicit user permission.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2014-9903 | A-28731691 | High | Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P | Feb 21, 2014 |
Information disclosure vulnerability in MediaTek Wi-Fi driver (device specific)
An information disclosure vulnerability in the MediaTek Wi-Fi driver could enable a local malicious application to access data outside of its permission levels. This issue is rated as High because it could be used to access sensitive data without explicit user permission.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3852 | A-29141147*
M-ALPS02751738 |
High | Android One | Apr 12, 2016 |
* The patch for this issue is not publicly available. The update is contained in the latest binary drivers for Nexus devices available from the Google Developer site.
Information disclosure vulnerability in USB driver
An information disclosure vulnerability in the USB driver could enable a local malicious application to access data outside of its permission levels. This issue is rated as High because it could be used to access sensitive data without explicit user permission.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-4482 | A-28619695 | High | All Nexus | May 3, 2016 |
Denial of service vulnerability in Qualcomm components
The table below contains security vulnerabilities affecting Qualcomm components, potentially including the Wi-Fi driver.
The most severe of these issues is rated as High due to the possibility that an attacker could cause a temporary remote denial of service resulting in a device hang or reboot.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2014-9901 | A-28670333 | High | Nexus 7 (2013) | Mar 31, 2014 |
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in Google Play services
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in Google Play services could allow a local attacker to bypass the Factory Reset Protection and gain access to the device. This is rated as Moderate due to the possibility of bypassing Factory Reset Protection, which could lead to successfully resetting the device and erasing all its data.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3853 | A-26803208* | Moderate | All Nexus | None | May 4, 2016 |
* The patch for this issue is not publicly available. The update is contained in the latest binary drivers for Nexus devices available from the Google Developer site.
Elevation of privilege vulnerability in Framework APIs
An elevation of privilege vulnerability in the framework APIs could enable a pre-installed application to increase its intent filter priority when the application is being updated without the user being notified. This issue is rated as Moderate because it could be used to gain elevated capabilities without explicit user permission.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Updated AOSP versions | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-2497 | A-27450489 | Moderate | All Nexus | 4.4.4, 5.0.2, 5.1.1, 6.0, 6.0.1 | Google internal |
Information disclosure vulnerability in kernel networking component
An information disclosure vulnerability in the kernel networking component could enable a local malicious application to access data outside of its permission levels. This issue is rated as Moderate because it first requires compromising a privileged process.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-4486 | A-28620102 | Moderate | All Nexus | May 3, 2016 |
Information disclosure vulnerability in kernel sound component
An information disclosure vulnerability in the kernel sound component could enable a local malicious application to access data outside of its permission levels. This issue is rated as Moderate because it first requires compromising a privileged process.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-4569 | A-28980557 | Moderate | All Nexus | May 9, 2016 |
| CVE-2016-4578 | A-28980217 | Moderate | All Nexus | May 11, 2016 |
Vulnerabilities in Qualcomm components
The table below contains security vulnerabilities affecting Qualcomm components, potentially including the bootloader, camera driver, character driver, networking, sound driver, and video driver.
| CVE | References | Severity | Updated Nexus devices | Date reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2016-3854 | QC-CR#897326 | High | None | Feb 2016 |
| CVE-2016-3855 | QC-CR#990824 | High | None | May 2016 |
| CVE-2016-2060 | QC-CR#959631 | Moderate | None | Apr 2016 |
Common Questions and Answers
This section answers common questions that may occur after reading this bulletin.
1. How do I determine if my device is updated to address these issues?
Security Patch Levels of 2016-08-01 or later address all issues associated with the 2016-08-01 security patch string level. Security Patch Levels of 2016-08-05 or later address all issues associated with the 2016-08-05 security patch string level. Refer to the help center for instructions on how to check the security patch level. Device manufacturers that include these updates should set the patch string level to: [ro.build.version.security_patch]:[2016-08-01] or [ro.build.version.security_patch]:[2016-08-05].
2. Why does this bulletin have two security patch level strings?
This bulletin has two security patch level strings in order to provide Android partners with the flexibility to move more quickly to fix a subset of vulnerabilities that are similar across all Android devices. Android partners are encouraged to fix all issues in this bulletin and use the latest security patch level string.
Devices that use the security patch level of August 5, 2016 or newer must include all applicable patches in this (and previous) security bulletins.
Devices that use the August 1, 2016 security patch level must include all issues associated with that security patch level, as well as fixes for all issues reported in previous security bulletins. Devices that use August 1, 2016 security patch level may also include a subset of fixes associated with the August 5, 2016 security patch level.
3. How do I determine which Nexus devices are affected by each issue?
In the 2016-08-01 and 2016-08-05 security vulnerability details sections, each table has an Updated Nexus devices column that covers the range of affected Nexus devices updated for each issue. This column has a few options:
- All Nexus devices: If an issue affects all Nexus devices, the table will have “All Nexus” in the Updated Nexus devices column. “All Nexus” encapsulates the following supported devices: Nexus 5, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6, Nexus 6P, Nexus 7 (2013), Nexus 9, Android One, Nexus Player, and Pixel C.
- Some Nexus devices: If an issue doesn’t affect all Nexus devices, the affected Nexus devices are listed in the Updated Nexus devices column.
- No Nexus devices: If no Nexus devices are affected by the issue, the table will have “None” in the Updated Nexus devices column.
4. What do the entries in the references column map to?
Entries under the References column of the vulnerability details table may contain a prefix identifying the organization to which the reference value belongs. These prefixes map as follows:
| Prefix | Reference |
|---|---|
| A- | Android bug ID |
| QC- | Qualcomm reference number |
| M- | MediaTek reference number |
| N- | NVIDIA reference number |
Revisions
- August 01, 2016: Bulletin published.
- August 02, 2016: Bulletin revised to include AOSP links.
- August 16, 2016: CVE-2016-3856 corrected to CVE-2016-2060 and updated the reference URL.
- October 21, 2016: Corrected typo in CVE-2016-4486.