Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessAchieve System-level code execution
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DeliveryAccess geniezone kernel interface
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ExploitTrigger missing permission check
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ExecutionEscalate privilege beyond System boundary
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ImpactRead sensitive data or modify protected system state
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V2 - Validation and Business Logic Specified type validation
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| Exploitation Conditions | Exploitation requires the attacker to have already achieved System-level code execution on the affected device - this is the mandatory and primary prerequisite. The geniezone interface is reachable only from within the Android OS privilege context, making remote exploitation impossible without a separate prior vulnerability chain. No special configuration, feature flag, or non-default deployment mode is required beyond running one of the ten affected MediaTek chipsets (MT8792, MT8883, MT8873, MT8893, MT8768, MT8796, MT8799, MT6991, MT8791T, MT8910) under standard Android operation. Exploitation is limited by: local-only attack vector (AV:L - no network access path), requirement for pre-existing System privilege (PR:H), and restriction to the specific set of affected chipset SKUs. No user interaction is required once System-level execution is established (UI:N). |
| Impact | The CVSS 3.1 base score of 6.0 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N) correctly reflects the significant prerequisite: System-level code execution on the target device must already be established. The Low attack complexity (AC:L) and absence of user interaction (UI:N) mean that once System privilege is obtained, exploitation of the geniezone flaw is straightforward. However, the PR:H metric is the key limiting factor - obtaining System privilege on a modern Android device itself requires a separate, non-trivial exploit. EPSS at 0.13% (3rd percentile) corroborates that real-world exploitation is rare. No CISA KEV listing and no known POC further reduce urgency. This vulnerability is most relevant as a link in a multi-stage privilege escalation chain targeting MediaTek-based Android devices, not as a standalone critical threat. The Scope:Unchanged (S:U) rating indicates the escalated impact stays within the same security domain, meaning a full TEE break-out is not confirmed by available data. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker who has compromised an Android application or service running with System privileges on a device containing one of the ten affected MediaTek chipsets sends a crafted call to the geniezone interface, bypassing the missing permission check to invoke privileged operations. This allows the attacker to read sensitive data or alter system integrity at a privilege level above System without any victim interaction. No public POC exists at time of analysis, making this scenario most plausible in the context of sophisticated targeted campaigns rather than broad opportunistic attacks. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Aug 03, 2026
Privilege escalation in MediaTek's geniezone component affects ten specific chipset models (MT8792, MT8883, MT8873, MT8893, MT8768, MT8796, MT8799, MT6991, MT8791T, MT8910) due to a missing permission check classified under CWE-1287. An attacker who has already obtained System-level privileges on an affected device can exploit this flaw to escalate further - potentially reaching kernel or TEE-adjacent privilege boundaries - without requiring any user interaction. No public exploit code exists and no active exploitation has been confirmed (EPSS 0.13%, 3rd percentile), positioning this as a chaining vulnerability relevant to targeted attacks rather than opportunistic mass exploitation.
RemediationAI
Apply the MediaTek-issued patch identified as ALPS10900493 (Issue MSV-6765), disclosed in the MediaTek August 2026 Product Security Bulletin at https://www.mediatek.com/product-security-bulletin/August-2026. OEMs and Android platform vendors integrating affected MediaTek chipsets should pull this patch into their next security update cycle and distribute it to end-user devices. An exact patched firmware or software version number is not independently specified in the available advisory data beyond the patch ID. As a compensating control where patch deployment is delayed, tightening SELinux policies to restrict which System-context processes can access geniezone interfaces may reduce the exploitable surface - though this requires platform-level customization and does not eliminate the underlying authorization flaw. No generic workaround is sufficient as a permanent substitute for the vendor patch.
Affected VersionsENISA
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Technical ContextAI · show details
The geniezone component is MediaTek's interface layer to the ARM TrustZone Trusted Execution Environment (TEE), handling secure world isolation on affected SoCs. The CPE string cpe:2.3:a:mediatek,_inc.:mediatek_chipset:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* covers the ten chipset families listed in EUVD-2026-52087. CWE-1287 (Improper Validation of Specified Type of Input) is the assigned root-cause class, though the description specifies a missing permission check - an authorization enforcement gap rather than a pure input-type validation error, suggesting CWE-862 (Missing Authorization) may be a more precise characterization. Regardless, the practical outcome is that the geniezone interface does not enforce adequate privilege boundaries, allowing System-context callers to issue operations normally reserved for higher-trust execution domains.
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Severity by source
AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
Local-only access via geniezone and mandatory pre-existing System privilege justify AV:L and PR:H; no availability impact described.
Primary rating from Vendor (MediaTek).
CVSS VectorVendor: MediaTek
Lifecycle Timeline
2DescriptionCVE.org
In geniezone, there is a possible escalation of privilege due to a missing permission check. This could lead to local escalation of privilege if a malicious actor has already obtained the System privilege. User interaction is not needed for exploitation. Patch ID: ALPS10900493; Issue ID: MSV-6765.
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-2026-52087
GHSA-777x-vvpp-fv9v
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
VulDB
Exploit-DB