CVE-2021-39797

Local privilege escalation via arbitrary PendingIntent options

Published Apr 12, 2022 · Updated Aug 4, 2024

Privilege escalation in Android 12 and 12L Framework allows local users to gain elevated privileges through LauncherApps APIs. LauncherApps and LauncherAppsService pass caller-supplied activityOptions bundles into privileged PendingIntent creation instead of discarding them. A locally installed application can exploit the flaw without additional execution privileges or user interaction, gaining the privileges of the affected operation.

CVSS severity7.8
High
EPSS probability0.12%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Privilege escalation in Android 12 and 12L Framework allows local users to gain elevated privileges through LauncherApps APIs. LauncherApps and LauncherAppsService pass caller-supplied activityOptions bundles into privileged PendingIntent creation instead of discarding them. A locally installed application can exploit the flaw without additional execution privileges or user interaction, gaining the privileges of the affected operation.

The record

CVE
CVE-2021-39797
Published
Apr 12, 2022
Updated
Aug 4, 2024
Vendor
Google Cloud
Product
Android
Classifications
CWE-269, T1068
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Apr 12, 2022CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 4, 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-12 Android-12L

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

Google Cloud · Androidversion=Android-12 Android-12L

Published CVSS scores

7.2NIST NVDAV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
7.8NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-269Improper Privilege Management
T1068Exploitation for Privilege Escalation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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