CVE-2020-11206
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2020-11206 is a buffer overflow vulnerability in Qualcomm's FastRPC component that allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause denial of service. The vulnerability affects numerous Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets across automotive, mobile, compute, and IoT devices. Attackers can exploit this by sending specially crafted parameters to trigger memory corruption.
💻 Affected Systems
- Snapdragon Auto
- Snapdragon Compute
- Snapdragon Consumer IOT
- Snapdragon Industrial IOT
- Snapdragon Mobile
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Full device compromise allowing remote code execution with kernel privileges, enabling complete control over affected devices.
Likely Case
Local privilege escalation from user space to kernel space, allowing attackers to bypass security controls and gain elevated access.
If Mitigated
Denial of service or application crashes if exploit attempts are detected and blocked by security controls.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires local access or ability to execute code on the device. The vulnerability was demonstrated at Pwn2Own 2021 and detailed in public research.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Security patches released in November 2020 and later
Vendor Advisory: https://www.qualcomm.com/company/product-security/bulletins/november-2020-bulletin
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Check with device manufacturer for available firmware updates. 2. Apply the latest security patches from Qualcomm. 3. Reboot device after patch installation. 4. Verify patch application through version checks.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Restrict FastRPC access
linuxLimit which applications can access FastRPC interfaces through SELinux policies or application sandboxing
# Configure SELinux policies to restrict FastRPC access
# Review and restrict application permissions
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict application vetting and only allow trusted applications to run on affected devices
- Deploy runtime application self-protection (RASP) or memory protection solutions to detect buffer overflow attempts
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check device firmware version and compare against patched versions in Qualcomm's November 2020 security bulletinCheck Version:
adb shell getprop ro.build.version.security_patch (for Android devices)Verify Fix Applied:
Verify that security patch level is November 2020 or later and check for specific FastRPC component updates📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unexpected FastRPC process crashes
- Memory access violations in kernel logs
- Suspicious privilege escalation attempts
Network Indicators:
- Unusual inter-process communication patterns
- Abnormal FastRPC interface usage
SIEM Query:
source="kernel" AND ("segmentation fault" OR "buffer overflow" OR "FastRPC")🔗 References
- https://blog.checkpoint.com/2020/08/06/achilles-small-chip-big-peril/
- https://research.checkpoint.com/2021/pwn2own-qualcomm-dsp/
- https://www.qualcomm.com/company/product-security/bulletins/november-2020-bulletin
- https://blog.checkpoint.com/2020/08/06/achilles-small-chip-big-peril/
- https://research.checkpoint.com/2021/pwn2own-qualcomm-dsp/
- https://www.qualcomm.com/company/product-security/bulletins/november-2020-bulletin
