CVE-2022-25719 is a high-severity vulnerability identified in various Qualcomm Snapdragon platforms, including Snapdragon Auto, Connectivity, Consumer Electronics Connectivity, Consumer IoT, Industrial IoT, IoT, Mobile, Voice & Music, Wearables, and Wired Infrastructure and Networking. The vulnerability arises from a buffer over-read condition in the WLAN component due to improper length checks during the processing of the authentication handshake. Specifically, when handling WLAN authentication frames, the affected Snapdragon chipsets fail to properly validate the length of incoming data, leading to reading beyond the allocated buffer boundaries (CWE-125). This flaw can cause information disclosure, as attackers may exploit the over-read to access sensitive memory contents that should not be accessible. The vulnerability affects a broad range of Qualcomm chipsets, including but not limited to APQ, IPQ, MDM, MSM, QCA, QCN, QCS, SD, WCD, WCN, and WSA series, covering many device types from mobile phones and IoT devices to automotive systems and networking infrastructure. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 8.2 (high severity), with an attack vector of network (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), no privileges required (PR:N), no user interaction (UI:N), unchanged scope (S:U), high confidentiality impact (C:H), no integrity impact (I:N), and low availability impact (A:L). This means the vulnerability can be exploited remotely over the network without authentication or user interaction, potentially leaking sensitive information from device memory. Although no known exploits are currently reported in the wild, the wide range of affected devices and the ease of exploitation make this a significant threat. The vulnerability could be leveraged by attackers to gather sensitive data from devices, which may include cryptographic keys, credentials, or other private information processed during WLAN authentication. This could facilitate further attacks such as unauthorized network access or device compromise. The lack of available patches at the time of reporting necessitates urgent attention from device manufacturers and integrators using affected Qualcomm chipsets.

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2022-25719 is considerable due to the widespread use of Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets in mobile devices, IoT endpoints, automotive systems, and networking equipment. Confidentiality breaches could expose sensitive corporate data, user credentials, or cryptographic material, undermining trust and compliance with data protection regulations such as GDPR. In sectors like automotive, industrial IoT, and critical infrastructure, exploitation could lead to information leakage that compromises operational security or safety. The vulnerability’s network-based attack vector and lack of required privileges mean attackers can remotely target devices without user interaction, increasing the risk of large-scale exploitation in enterprise and consumer environments. Additionally, the presence of affected chipsets in consumer electronics and mobile devices used by employees can serve as a foothold for attackers to infiltrate corporate networks. The potential for information disclosure also raises concerns for privacy and intellectual property protection. Given the diversity of affected products, organizations may face challenges in inventorying vulnerable devices and applying mitigations promptly. The absence of known exploits in the wild currently reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, especially as exploit development could emerge rapidly.

1. Immediate inventory and identification of all devices and systems using affected Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets across the organization’s environment, including mobile devices, IoT endpoints, automotive systems, and networking hardware. 2. Engage with device vendors, manufacturers, and Qualcomm to obtain and deploy official firmware or software patches as soon as they become available. 3. Where patches are not yet available, implement network segmentation and strict access controls to limit exposure of vulnerable devices to untrusted networks, especially restricting WLAN access to trusted users and devices only. 4. Monitor network traffic for anomalous WLAN authentication handshake attempts or unusual packet patterns that could indicate exploitation attempts targeting this vulnerability. 5. Employ endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions capable of detecting suspicious activities related to WLAN authentication processes. 6. Educate IT and security teams about the vulnerability specifics to enhance incident response readiness. 7. For critical infrastructure and automotive systems, consider additional compensating controls such as disabling vulnerable WLAN interfaces if feasible or using alternative secure communication channels until patches are applied. 8. Maintain up-to-date asset management and vulnerability scanning to track remediation progress and ensure no devices remain unpatched.