System privilege escalation via GPU use-after-free race
Published Feb 6, 2023 · Updated Mar 26, 2025
Improper synchronization in the MediaTek GPU component on Android 12.0 and 13.0 allows local users with System privileges to elevate privileges. A race condition permits a GPU object to be freed while it remains in use, creating stale-memory access that can be exploited for privilege escalation. Exploitation requires local access, System execution privileges, and high-complexity timing, but requires no user interaction.
Summary
What happened
Improper synchronization in the MediaTek GPU component on Android 12.0 and 13.0 allows local users with System privileges to elevate privileges. A race condition permits a GPU object to be freed while it remains in use, creating stale-memory access that can be exploited for privilege escalation. Exploitation requires local access, System execution privileges, and high-complexity timing, but requires no user interaction.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2023-20611
- Published
- Feb 6, 2023
- Updated
- Mar 26, 2025
- Vendor
- Unknown vendor
- Product
- Unknown product
- Classifications
- CWE-662, T1068
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- admin
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Feb 6, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Mar 26, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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What is affected?
Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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