CVE-2021-1925
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability in Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets allows denial of service attacks through improper handling of group management action frames in wireless communication. Attackers can send specially crafted frames to crash or disrupt affected devices. This affects numerous Snapdragon-powered devices across automotive, mobile, IoT, and networking sectors.
💻 Affected Systems
- Snapdragon Auto
- Snapdragon Compute
- Snapdragon Connectivity
- Snapdragon Consumer Electronics Connectivity
- Snapdragon Consumer IOT
- Snapdragon Industrial IOT
- Snapdragon Mobile
- Snapdragon Voice & Music
- Snapdragon Wired Infrastructure and Networking
📦 What is this software?
Sd7c Firmware by Qualcomm
Sd8c Firmware by Qualcomm
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete device crash requiring physical restart, disrupting critical functions in automotive, industrial, or medical devices
Likely Case
Temporary wireless connectivity disruption requiring device reboot
If Mitigated
Minor service interruption with automatic recovery if proper network segmentation and monitoring are in place
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires wireless network access but no authentication; technical details limited in public advisory
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Refer to Qualcomm May 2021 security bulletin for specific chipset firmware versions
Vendor Advisory: https://www.qualcomm.com/company/product-security/bulletins/may-2021-bulletin
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Check device manufacturer for firmware updates 2. Apply Qualcomm-provided firmware patches 3. Reboot device after update 4. Verify wireless functionality post-update
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Wireless Network Segmentation
allIsolate vulnerable devices on separate wireless networks with strict access controls
Disable Unnecessary Wireless Features
allTurn off group management features if not required for device operation
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement network monitoring for abnormal wireless frame patterns
- Deploy physical security controls to limit wireless access to trusted devices only
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check device specifications against affected Snapdragon chipsets listed in Qualcomm advisoryCheck Version:
Device-specific commands vary by manufacturer; typically 'adb shell getprop ro.build.fingerprint' for Android devicesVerify Fix Applied:
Verify firmware version matches patched versions in manufacturer documentation📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Wireless driver crashes
- Unexpected network disconnections
- Kernel panic logs related to wireless modules
Network Indicators:
- Abnormal group management action frame patterns
- Excessive deauthentication frames
SIEM Query:
wireless AND (crash OR disconnect OR panic) AND (group_management OR action_frame)