CVE-2021-0313
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability in Android's TextView component allows remote attackers to cause denial of service (slowdown or crash) by sending specially crafted input. It affects Android devices running versions 8.0 through 11 without requiring user interaction or additional privileges.
💻 Affected Systems
- Android
📦 What is this software?
Android by Google
Android by Google
Android by Google
Android by Google
Android by Google
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Remote attacker crashes the TextView component, potentially causing app instability or device performance degradation across multiple applications.
Likely Case
Malicious content in web pages, messages, or apps triggers TextView crashes, disrupting user experience in affected applications.
If Mitigated
With proper patching, no impact as the input validation flaw is corrected.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires sending malicious input to TextView components, which can be done remotely without authentication.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Android Security Bulletin January 2021 patches
Vendor Advisory: https://source.android.com/security/bulletin/2021-01-01
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Apply January 2021 Android security patches from device manufacturer. 2. Update affected Android devices to patched firmware. 3. Reboot device after update.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable TextView in untrusted apps
androidRestrict TextView usage in applications that process untrusted input
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Isolate affected devices from untrusted network sources
- Monitor for TextView component crashes in application logs
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Android version in Settings > About phone > Android version. If version is 8.0-11 without January 2021 patches, device is vulnerable.Check Version:
adb shell getprop ro.build.version.releaseVerify Fix Applied:
Verify Android security patch level includes January 2021 or later in Settings > About phone > Android security patch level.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- TextView crash logs
- Application ANR (Application Not Responding) events
- System UI crashes
Network Indicators:
- Unusual network traffic to TextView components
- Patterns of input causing repeated TextView failures
SIEM Query:
source="android_logs" AND ("TextView" AND ("crash" OR "ANR" OR "slow"))