CVE-2022-20085

Local privilege escalation via symlink following

Published May 3, 2022 · Updated Aug 3, 2024

Symlink following in MediaTek netdiag on Android 11.0 and 12.0 allows local users to gain elevated privileges through a crafted link. The component improperly resolves a filesystem path and follows a symbolic link before accessing its target; MediaTek has not disclosed the affected function or file operation. Exploitation requires System execution privileges, needs no user interaction, and is limited to the listed MediaTek chipsets.

CVSS severity6.7
Medium
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

Symlink following in MediaTek netdiag on Android 11.0 and 12.0 allows local users to gain elevated privileges through a crafted link. The component improperly resolves a filesystem path and follows a symbolic link before accessing its target; MediaTek has not disclosed the affected function or file operation. Exploitation requires System execution privileges, needs no user interaction, and is limited to the listed MediaTek chipsets.

The record

CVE
CVE-2022-20085
Published
May 3, 2022
Updated
Aug 3, 2024
Vendor
Unknown vendor
Product
Unknown product
Classifications
CWE-61, CWE-59, T1068
Attack vector
local
Privileges
admin

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. May 3, 2022CVE 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

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Affected buildAffected product and version details are unavailable.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesadmin

What is affected?

Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

4.6NIST NVDAV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
6.7NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/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 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesadmin
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-61UNIX Symbolic Link (Symlink) Following
CWE-59Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')
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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