VulnerabilityPublished 28 Jun 2023Updated 21 Oct 2025

CVE-2023-21237: Android · Information Disclosure

Affects AndroidSource CVE Database V5

Exploited in the wild · KEV due 26 Mar 2024 : apply the vendor's fix or mitigations to Android now.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 17:16 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

6.2Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

KEV deadline: 26 Mar 2024 US federal agencies must patch by this date; a sensible deadline for everyone else. Other KEV due dates
EPSS: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 18% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

Attack Vector: Local
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: None
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Local: The vulnerable component is not bound to the network stack and the attacker’s path is via read/write/execute capabilities. Either: the attacker exploits the vulnerability by accessing the target system locally (e.g., keyboard, console), or remotely (e.g., SSH); or the attacker relies on User Interaction by another person to perform actions required to exploit the vulnerability (e.g., tricking a legitimate user into opening a malicious document).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

t = 0 is the CVE’s publication on cve.org

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 28 Jun 2023
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: evidence found.
Listed in CISA KEV 251 days after disclosure
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

CVE ID reserved
by Android (associated with Google Inc. or Open Handset Alliance)
3 Nov 2022, 237 days before disclosure
CVE published
on cve.org
28 Jun 2023, t = 0
Added to CISA KEV (opens in a new tab)
exploitation confirmed
5 Mar 2024, 251 days after disclosure
KEV remediation due
US federal deadline
26 Mar 2024, 272 days after disclosure

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), CISA KEV (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

Description

In applyRemoteView of NotificationContentInflater.java, there is a possible way to hide foreground service notification due to misleading or insufficient UI. This could lead to local information disclosure with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.Product: AndroidVersions: Android-13Android ID: A-251586912

Impact

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2023-21237 lies in the potential unauthorized disclosure of sensitive information on Android 13 devices. Organizations with mobile workforces relying on Android 13 smartphones or tablets may face risks of data leakage if attackers exploit this vulnerability locally. The ability to hide foreground service notifications can allow malicious applications or insiders to operate stealthily, potentially exfiltrating data or performing unauthorized actions without user awareness. This undermines endpoint security and could facilitate further attacks or data breaches. Although the vulnerability does not affect system integrity or availability, the confidentiality breach could lead to exposure of sensitive corporate or personal information, violating data protection regulations such as GDPR. The lack of required user interaction and privileges increases the risk that attackers with local access (e.g., via physical device access or malicious apps) can exploit this flaw. However, the local attack vector limits remote exploitation, reducing the threat surface for organizations without direct device access risks. Overall, the vulnerability could weaken mobile device security postures and increase insider threat risks.

Mitigation

To mitigate CVE-2023-21237, European organizations should: 1) Monitor for and apply official Android security patches and updates from device manufacturers and Google as soon as they become available to address this vulnerability. 2) Enforce strict mobile device management (MDM) policies to control app installations and restrict installation of untrusted or potentially malicious applications that could exploit local vulnerabilities. 3) Educate users on the importance of physical device security to prevent unauthorized local access. 4) Utilize endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions capable of monitoring suspicious local activities on mobile devices, including attempts to manipulate notifications or foreground services. 5) Review and audit installed apps for unnecessary permissions and suspicious behavior that could exploit notification mechanisms. 6) Consider deploying additional mobile threat defense (MTD) tools that can detect and block exploitation attempts targeting Android notification vulnerabilities. 7) Maintain comprehensive logging and alerting on mobile devices to detect anomalies related to foreground service notifications. These steps go beyond generic advice by focusing on controlling local access, monitoring notification integrity, and enforcing strict app governance.

CWE-200Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessLikelihood of exploit: HighCWE Top 25 (2025): #20OWASP Top 10 A01:2025: Broken Access Control (opens in a new tab)
The product exposes sensitive information to an actor that is not explicitly authorized to have access to that information.
MITRE discourages mapping vulnerabilities to this broad entry; the root cause is usually a more specific weakness.
Architecture and Design · Separation of Privilege
Compartmentalize the system to have "safe" areas where trust boundaries can be unambiguously drawn. Do not allow sensitive data to go outside of the trust boundary and always be careful when interfacing with a compartment outside of the safe area.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Error Handling (opens in a new tab)
Logging (opens in a new tab)
Authorization (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V8.3.4 (opens in a new tab)
V14.3.3 (opens in a new tab)
V7.3.3 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Subverting Environment Variable Values (opens in a new tab)
ICMP Echo Request Ping (opens in a new tab)
TCP SYN Scan (opens in a new tab)
Enumerate Mail Exchange (MX) Records (opens in a new tab)
DNS Zone Transfers (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

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Exploitation evidence

Timeline

What to do

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 28 Oct 2025, 22:59 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-200

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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