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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Deploy rogue base station near target
  2. Delivery
    Induce UE modem to attach
  3. Exploit
    Send crafted over-the-air message
  4. Execution
    Trigger out-of-bounds write in modem
  5. Impact
    Escalate privilege on baseband

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Bounds checking, write limits
MITRE ATT&CK

2 techniques across 2 tactics: Execution, Privilege Escalation

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires the victim's UE (device modem) to connect to a rogue base station controlled by the attacker - i.e., the attacker must operate malicious cellular radio infrastructure within signal range and get the target device to attach to it. This is reflected by AV:A (adjacent/radio proximity) and AC:H (the setup and victim-attachment conditions raise complexity). Limiting factors: physical/radio proximity is mandatory (not remotely exploitable over the internet), and the attack cannot be automated at scale (SSVC Automatable: no). No authentication is required (PR:N) and no user interaction is needed (UI:N), and it affects the listed MediaTek chipsets regardless of configuration, so the only real gating conditions are proximity and the rogue-base-station prerequisite. Patch MOLY01778988 (Issue MSV-8897) remediates it.

Impact

This is a genuine but conditionally-gated mobile baseband vulnerability rather than a mass-exploitation emergency. The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:A/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H, score 7.5) requires no privileges or user interaction and yields total CIA compromise, but two signals temper real-world risk: AV:A (adjacent, not network) means the attacker must be within radio range operating a rogue base station, and AC:H reflects the non-trivial setup and timing conditions. These CVSS facts align cleanly with CISA SSVC, which rates Exploitation as 'none' (no observed or reported exploitation) and Automatable as 'no' (the rogue-base-station prerequisite cannot be mass-scripted across the internet), while confirming Technical Impact as 'total' - consistent with the C:H/I:H/A:H and the CWE-787 out-of-bounds write. There is no CISA KEV listing and no EPSS score or public POC in the provided data, so exploitation is currently theoretical. The signals are consistent with one another (high technical impact but low ease/breadth of exploitation), pointing to a targeted, proximity-based threat (e.g., against high-value individuals) rather than widespread opportunistic attack. One point to verify with the vendor: an out-of-bounds write in the modem leading to 'escalation of privilege' could plausibly cross a trust boundary from baseband into the application processor, which would arguably warrant S:C (scope change); MediaTek rated it S:U, so the scope impact should be confirmed.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker sets up a rogue/malicious base station (e.g., a fake cell tower) within radio range and induces a nearby MediaTek-powered device's modem to connect. Once the UE attaches, the attacker sends a crafted over-the-air message that triggers the missing bounds check, causing an out-of-bounds write in modem memory and escalating privileges on the baseband with no user interaction. No public exploit code has been identified at time of analysis, and the high attack complexity (rogue base station plus victim attachment) makes this a targeted rather than opportunistic scenario.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
No patch listed yet 0.2% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Oct 05, 2026

Memory corruption in the MediaTek cellular modem baseband (an out-of-bounds write from a missing bounds check) allows an attacker who operates a rogue base station within radio range to escalate privileges on the target device without authentication and without any user interaction. Exploitation is not reachable over the internet: the CVSS vector AV:A/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N with C:H/I:H/A:H reflects that the attacker must be in adjacent radio proximity and must successfully induce the victim's UE to attach to the malicious base station, and CISA's SSVC assessment records Exploitation: none and Automatable: no, so this is a conditionally gated baseband flaw rather than a mass-exploitation emergency. No public exploit code has been identified at time of analysis; MediaTek has released a fix under Patch ID MOLY01778988 (Issue ID MSV-8897) in its October 2026 product security bulletin.

RemediationAI

Vendor-released patch: MediaTek Patch ID MOLY01778988 (Issue ID MSV-8897), published in the MediaTek October 2026 product security bulletin at https://www.mediatek.com/product-security-bulletin/October-2026; because this is modem firmware in silicon-level chipsets, the fix is delivered to end users as an OEM/carrier device firmware update, so asset owners should track the bulletin against their device models and apply the vendor OTA build that incorporates MOLY01778988 rather than expecting a standalone download. Until the patched baseband image is available for a given handset or module, the only effective compensating control is to reduce exposure to the prerequisite rogue base station: restrict devices to trusted carrier networks and, where the device and fleet policy allow it, disable legacy radio access technologies and automatic attachment to unknown networks (side effect: loss of coverage/roaming capability and possible loss of legacy fallback in poor-signal areas), and avoid operating devices in areas where hostile base stations are plausible (side effect: operational restrictions on field deployments, not a technical fix). Network-side controls such as carrier-side rogue-base-station detection, IMSI/IMEI catcher monitoring and radio access network integrity checks can raise the cost of the attack but do not remove the underlying missing bounds check, and no patch-independent configuration change in the device itself has been identified in the available data.

Affected VersionsENISA

MediaTek chipset MT6873
MediaTek chipset MT6983
MediaTek chipset MT8796
MediaTek chipset MT2737
MediaTek chipset MT8883
MediaTek chipset MT6885
MediaTek chipset MT8792
MediaTek chipset MT8668
MediaTek chipset MT8755
MediaTek chipset MT8893
MediaTek chipset MT6878
MediaTek chipset MT6895
MediaTek chipset MT6896
MediaTek chipset MT6889
MediaTek chipset MT6980
MediaTek chipset MT6815
MediaTek chipset MT6883
MediaTek chipset MT8775
MediaTek chipset MT6875
MediaTek chipset MT8863
MediaTek chipset MT6899
MediaTek chipset MT8797
MediaTek chipset MT8791
MediaTek chipset MT8793
MediaTek chipset MT6835
MediaTek chipset MT6988
MediaTek chipset MT6879
MediaTek chipset MT6877
MediaTek chipset MT6853
MediaTek chipset MT2716
MediaTek chipset MT6893
MediaTek chipset MT6985
MediaTek chipset MT6990
MediaTek chipset MT6833
MediaTek chipset MT6989
MediaTek chipset MT8676
MediaTek chipset MT6813
MediaTek chipset MT8873
MediaTek chipset MT6982
MediaTek chipset MT8771
MediaTek chipset MT6890
MediaTek chipset MT6991
MediaTek chipset MT6881
MediaTek chipset MT6858
MediaTek chipset MT6880
MediaTek chipset MT6886
MediaTek chipset MT6891
MediaTek chipset MT6897
MediaTek chipset MT6993
MediaTek chipset MT2735
MediaTek chipset MT8791T
MediaTek chipset MT6855
MediaTek chipset MT8678
MediaTek chipset MT8695
MediaTek chipset MT8798
MediaTek chipset MT6986
MediaTek chipset MT8696

Affects your stack

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Technical ContextAI · show details

The defect is a CWE-787 out-of-bounds write in the modem component of a wide range of MediaTek chipsets, rooted in a missing bounds check before a write into memory. Because the flaw sits in the baseband/modem firmware that parses over-the-air signaling, the attack surface is the cellular radio interface rather than any IP-reachable service: the attacker must field a rogue base station and get the victim UE to camp on it, which is why the assessed vector is AV:A (adjacent, i.e. radio proximity) with AC:H (the rogue-base-station setup and victim attachment add complexity) while still scoring PR:N and UI:N - no credentials and no user action are needed once the device attaches. Success yields total technical impact (C:H/I:H/A:H) on the modem context, i.e. remote escalation of privilege from the baseband into the device. MediaTek has assigned the fix Patch ID MOLY01778988 and the internal Issue ID MSV-8897, and EUVD tracks the same issue as EUVD-2026-92209 across an extensive list of modem chipset families (for example MT6873, MT6983, MT6885, MT6895, MT6833, MT6853, MT8668, MT8676, MT879x/MT888x/MT889x series and others), indicating the vulnerable code is shared across many generations of 5G/4G modem silicon. No CPE strings were supplied in the source data, so product identification relies on the EUVD chipset enumeration and the vendor bulletin.

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Severity by source

Vendor (mediatek) PRIMARY 7.5 HIGH
AV:A/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 7.5 HIGH

AV:A and AC:H because exploitation needs radio-proximity and a rogue base station the victim UE must attach to; PR:N/UI:N per description; C/I/A:H for total modem compromise.

3.1 AV:A/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:A/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (mediatek).

CVSS VectorVendor: mediatek

Attack Vector
Adjacent
Attack Complexity
High
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

Lifecycle Timeline

3
CVSS changed
Oct 05, 2026 - 11:22 NVD
7.5 (None) 7.5 (HIGH)
CVE Published
Oct 05, 2026 - 02:16 cve.org
HIGH 7.5
CVE Published
Oct 05, 2026 - 02:16 cve.org
UNKNOWN (no severity yet)

DescriptionCVE.org

In Modem, there is a possible out of bounds write due to a missing bounds check. This could lead to remote escalation of privilege, if a UE has connected to a rogue base station controlled by the attacker, with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation. Patch ID: MOLY01778988; Issue ID: MSV-8897.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.2%
Top 88% exploitable
Prevalence
High
MediaTek chipsets power a large share of smartphones and connected devices globally
Data Quality
5 sources
Confidence: Medium

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.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.2%
Patch available No
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Scheduled
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Controlled
Automatable
No
Human Impact· derived
High
Technical Impact
Total

Priority Score

38
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +38
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Privilege escalation occurs when an attacker leverages flaws in access control mechanisms to gain permissions beyond what they were originally granted.

A buffer overflow occurs when a program writes more data to a memory buffer than it was allocated to hold, causing the excess data to spill into adjacent memory regions.

Memory corruption occurs when a program writes data beyond the boundaries of allocated memory regions or accesses memory in unintended ways, violating the integrity of the process's address space.

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