Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2021-0547 is an Android 11 local privilege-escalation issue tied to GPS handling. A missing permission check could let an attacker-controlled value reach a GPS HAL handler, causing undefined behavior in some implementations. The public bundle does not provide CVSS, confirmed exploitation, or broad product impact beyond Android 11.
Executive priority
Treat this as a patch-compliance issue for Android 11 fleets rather than an emergency exploitation event. Prioritize devices lacking June 2021-era security updates, especially where unsupported devices remain in production or privileged business workflows.
Technical view
The issue is in NetInitiatedActivity.java onReceive, where a missing permission check may allow attacker-controlled input to be supplied to a GPS HAL handler. Impact is local escalation of privilege and undefined behavior in some HAL implementations. Exploitation reportedly needs no user interaction and no additional execution privileges.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited by the supplied sources to Android 11 devices, including devices covered by the June 1, 2021 Pixel security bulletin. The bundle does not identify other Android versions, specific device models, or affected GPS HAL vendors.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or any cited evidence of active exploitation. The attack context is local, with no user interaction required, but implementation-specific HAL behavior makes practical impact unclear from the public data provided.
Researcher notes
Public detail is sparse. Key unknowns include affected HAL implementations, concrete privilege boundary crossed, and device-specific behavior. Analysis should stay anchored to Android ID A-174151048 and vendor bulletins; do not generalize impact beyond Android 11 without additional vendor evidence.
Mitigation direction
- Apply vendor security updates covering Android ID A-174151048 where available.
- Prioritize Android 11 devices that have not received June 2021 or later security updates.
- Check OEM guidance for non-Pixel Android 11 devices before assuming patch coverage.
- Retire or isolate unsupported Android 11 devices that cannot receive security updates.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Android 11 devices across managed fleets.
- Verify each device security patch level against vendor bulletins for June 2021 coverage.
- Confirm whether device OEM advisories reference Android ID A-174151048 or CVE-2021-0547.
- Review mobile EDR or MDM data for unsupported or unpatched Android 11 endpoints.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CVE-2021-0547 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Unknown
- CVSS
- Not scored
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS and timeline data
No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://source.android.com/security/bulletin/pixel/2021-06-01CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.