CVE-2021-0317

Local privilege escalation via retained permission grants

Published Jan 11, 2021 · Updated Aug 3, 2024

Incorrect authorization in the Android Framework in Android 8.0 through 11 allows local users to gain privileges via an app permission upgrade. BasePermission.createOrUpdate marked state for cleanup only for normal-to-runtime changes, leaving existing grants intact for other non-runtime-to-runtime transitions. A malicious local application must induce the permission-definition change and obtain user interaction; exploitation retains a grant that Android should revoke.

CVSS severity7.8
High
EPSS probability0.20%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Incorrect authorization in the Android Framework in Android 8.0 through 11 allows local users to gain privileges via an app permission upgrade. BasePermission.createOrUpdate marked state for cleanup only for normal-to-runtime changes, leaving existing grants intact for other non-runtime-to-runtime transitions. A malicious local application must induce the permission-definition change and obtain user interaction; exploitation retains a grant that Android should revoke.

The record

CVE
CVE-2021-0317
Published
Jan 11, 2021
Updated
Aug 3, 2024
Vendor
Google Cloud
Product
Android
Classifications
CWE-863, T1404
Attack vector
local
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jan 11, 2021CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 3, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=Android-10
  2. Affected versionversion=Android-11
  3. Affected versionversion=Android-8.0
  4. Affected versionversion=Android-8.1
  5. Affected versionversion=Android-9

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

Google Cloud · Androidversion=Android-10; version=Android-11; version=Android-8.0; version=Android-8.1; version=Android-9

Published CVSS scores

7.8NIST National Vulnerability DatabaseCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.4NIST National Vulnerability DatabaseAV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 9, 2026Sep 15, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 15, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-863Incorrect Authorization
T1404Exploitation for Privilege Escalation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

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Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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