Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessInstall malicious low-privilege app
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DeliveryInvoke moveTaskToFrontLocked path
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ExploitExploit confused-deputy BAL check
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ExecutionLaunch background activity to foreground
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ImpactAchieve local privilege escalation
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A01:2025 - Broken Access Control
ASVS 5.0
V4 - API and Web Service Proxy/intermediary controls
|
| Exploitation Conditions | Requires a locally installed, untrusted application running on the target device - the CVSS AV:L vector means there is no remote network path; an attacker must first get code onto the device (e.g., via a malicious app). Given PR:N/UI:N, that app needs no special permissions and no user interaction to trigger the confused deputy in moveTaskToFrontLocked and perform the background activity launch. Exploitation is limited to Android 14, 15, 16, 16-qpr2, and 17; the primary limiting factor is the local-only attack surface (an app must already be present/executing), and SSVC marks the flaw as not automatable, constraining mass exploitation. |
| Impact | This is a genuine but not emergency-level priority. The CVSS vector (AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H, 8.4 HIGH) describes a local attack: the attacker needs code already running on the device (a malicious or compromised app), not network reach, so AV:L is the dominant risk-limiting factor despite PR:N. The SSVC decision framework corroborates a measured posture - Exploitation: none (no observed or public exploitation), Automatable: no, Technical Impact: total - which maps to the vuln.today 'this_week' priority rather than act_now/emergency. There is no CISA KEV listing and no EPSS score supplied, so widespread or active exploitation is not indicated; combined with SSVC Exploitation:none, the real-world near-term risk is lower than the 8.4 base score alone would suggest. The high score is driven by the 'total' technical impact (full C/I/A compromise once triggered) rather than by ease of remote reach. One point to verify: SSVC marks Automatable:no, consistent with the confused-deputy BAL nature requiring a locally installed app, which argues against mass/worm-style exploitation. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | A user installs a malicious or trojanized app that requests no special permissions. The app abuses the confused deputy in moveTaskToFrontLocked to perform a background activity launch, bypassing BAL restrictions to bring its own (or a spoofed) activity to the foreground without user interaction, escalating its effective privilege locally. No public exploit code is identified at time of analysis, and the precise trigger sequence is not described in the available sources. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Nov 02, 2026
Background activity launch in Google Android 14, 15, 16, 16-qpr2, and 17 allows a locally installed app to start activities in the background by exploiting a confused deputy in ActivityTaskManagerService.moveTaskToFrontLocked, bypassing the task-ordering checks that are supposed to prevent exactly that. Per the assessed CVSS vector (AV:L/PR:N/UI:N), the attacker needs no special permissions and no user interaction once an untrusted app is running on the device, yielding high confidentiality and integrity impact with local escalation of privilege. The flaw is rated this-week priority rather than emergency: it is not marked as actively exploited in CISA KEV, SSVC records exploitation as none and automatable as no, and no public exploit code was identified at time of analysis. Fixes are delivered through the Android Security Bulletin dated 2026-11-01.
RemediationAI
Vendor-released patch: apply the Android Security Bulletin dated 2026-11-01 (https://source.android.com/docs/security/bulletin/2026/2026-11-01), which is the vendor's designated fix channel for this issue across Android 14, 15, 16, 16-qpr2, and 17; consult the bulletin for the exact patch level for each branch, since the specific fix build identifiers are not stated in the source data. Because exploitation requires an untrusted app already installed and running on the device (AV:L with PR:N/UI:N), the practical exposure for any given device is bounded by what applications it is permitted to run - tightening which app sources are allowed to install on managed fleets reduces the reachable attack surface, though it does not fix the confused deputy itself and the vendor update remains the complete fix. Devices with an available OEM or carrier update should be prioritized, and the bulletin should be checked for any build-specific caveats before scheduling rollout.
Affected VersionsENISA
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Technical ContextAI · show details
ActivityTaskManagerService is the Android system service that owns task and activity bookkeeping, and moveTaskToFrontLocked is the internal, lock-held routine that reorders the task stack when an existing task is brought forward. Background activity launch (BAL) restrictions, tightened progressively since Android 10, are meant to stop apps from starting or surfacing activities while they are not in the foreground because those transitions are a classic vehicle for UI spoofing, tapjacking, and permission or intent-redirection abuse. This CVE is classified as CWE-441, Confused Deputy: the service performs a privileged task-stack operation on behalf of a caller whose authority to request that transition is not adequately verified, so the system acts as the deputy for an app that should not have been able to influence the stack that way. The result is an elevation of privilege that is entirely local in nature - the CVSS vector is AV:L with PR:N and UI:N, so the precondition is simply that an untrusted app is installed and executing on the target device, with no permission grant, no user tap, and no remote network path required. The trigger sequence beyond the entry point in moveTaskToFrontLocked is not described in the available sources, and SSVC marks the flaw as not automatable, which limits mass-exploitation potential. Affected builds span Android 14, 15, 16, 16-qpr2, and 17.
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Severity by source
AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
AV:L because a locally installed app is required; PR:N/UI:N as the abusing app needs no permissions or interaction; C/I/A:H reflect the 'total' technical impact of local privilege escalation.
Primary rating from Vendor (google_android).
CVSS VectorVendor: google_android
Lifecycle Timeline
3DescriptionCVE.org
In moveTaskToFrontLocked of ActivityTaskManagerService.java, there is a possible background application launch (bal) issue due to a confused deputy. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.
Articles & Coverage 1
Executive ViewAI
A high-severity vulnerability in Google Android (CVE-2026-58944) allows a malicious app to launch activities in the background, potentially compromising sensitive data and device integrity. Because the flaw requires no user interaction or special permissions, any organization with Android devices in its fleet is exposed if an untrusted app is installed, making this a significant risk for mobile-dependent operations and a priority for security management.
No vendor-released patch identified at time of analysis. Interim mitigations include restricting app installations to trusted sources (e.g., Google Play only), enforcing mobile device management policies that prevent sideloading, and enabling Google Play Protect to scan for malicious apps. Apply vendor patch when available.
Threat Intelligence Overview
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
Privilege escalation occurs when an attacker leverages flaws in access control mechanisms to gain permissions beyond what they were originally granted.
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EUVD-2026-115388
GHSA-6f2h-g2jc-46xh
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB