CVE-2023-21116 — In verifyReplacingVersionCode of InstallPackageHelper

In verifyReplacingVersionCode of InstallPackageHelper.java, there is a possible way to downgrade system apps below system image version due to a logic error in the code. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with System execution privileges needed. User interaction is

01What is this vulnerability?

In verifyReplacingVersionCode of InstallPackageHelper.java, there is a possible way to downgrade system apps below system image version due to a logic error in the code. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with System execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.Product: AndroidVersions: Android-11 Android-12 Android-12L Android-13Android ID…

02Affected products

Vendor	Product	Versions
n	a / Android	Android-11 Android-12 Android-12L Android-13

03Active exploitation status

Not currently listed on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog. EPSS is the best forward-looking signal — see the EPSS row above.

04Recommended remediation

• Patch to a fixed version listed in the vendor advisory (see references below).
• Mitigate with WAF rules, network egress filters, or feature flags where the patch is not yet available.
• Hunt historical logs for exploitation indicators — see Detection signatures below.

05Technical details

For the full vendor write-up, exploit chains, and reference implementations, see the references list in section 09.

06Detection signatures

Ask SARA in chat to draft a starting detection for this CVE in your stack of choice.

07Related CVEs

No directly-cited follow-up CVEs in the KB record for this advisory. The references list in section 09 carries the vendor cross-references.

08Timeline

• Published: 2023-05-15T00:00:00.000Z
• Last modified: 2025-01-24T17:04:28.406Z

09References

• source.android.com — https://source.android.com/security/bulletin/2023-05-01