CVE-2024-53011 is a vulnerability categorized under CWE-264 (Permissions, Privileges, and Access Controls) and CWE-200 (Information Exposure) affecting a wide array of Qualcomm Snapdragon platforms and associated chipsets. The root cause is improper permission and access control enforcement in the Video Analytics engine, a component responsible for processing video data and analytics on the affected devices. This flaw allows an attacker with high privileges (PR:H) but no user interaction (UI:N) to gain unauthorized access to sensitive information processed or stored by the Video Analytics engine. The vulnerability has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.9, indicating a high severity level, with a vector string AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N. This means the attack requires local access with low complexity, high privileges, no user interaction, and impacts confidentiality and integrity severely, while availability remains unaffected. The scope is changed (S:C), indicating that the vulnerability can affect resources beyond the initially vulnerable component. The affected products include a comprehensive list of Qualcomm platforms such as FastConnect 6700/6900/7800, Flight RB5 5G, multiple QCA and QCS series chipsets, Snapdragon 8 Gen 1/2/3 Mobile Platforms, AR platforms, robotics platforms, and various wireless connectivity modules. These platforms are embedded in smartphones, IoT devices, robotics, and other connected systems. The vulnerability was published on March 3, 2025, with no known exploits in the wild at the time of reporting. The lack of patch links suggests that fixes may still be pending or in development. The improper access control could lead to unauthorized disclosure of video analytics data, potentially exposing sensitive user or device information and undermining trust in device security and privacy.

The impact of CVE-2024-53011 is significant for organizations and users relying on affected Qualcomm Snapdragon platforms. Since the vulnerability allows information disclosure of sensitive video analytics data, it can lead to privacy violations, leakage of confidential information, and potential exposure of proprietary or personal data. Attackers with elevated privileges could leverage this flaw to gain insights into video streams or analytics results, which might be used for further attacks or surveillance. The integrity impact means that attackers could potentially manipulate or corrupt video analytics data, affecting decision-making processes in applications relying on this data, such as security monitoring, autonomous systems, or augmented reality. Although availability is not impacted, the confidentiality and integrity breaches alone can cause reputational damage, regulatory penalties, and loss of user trust. Enterprises deploying devices with affected chipsets in critical infrastructure, mobile communications, or IoT environments face heightened risks. The broad range of affected products increases the attack surface, making mitigation and patching a priority to prevent exploitation in sensitive environments.

To mitigate CVE-2024-53011 effectively, organizations should: 1) Monitor Qualcomm’s security advisories closely and apply official patches or firmware updates as soon as they become available to address the improper access controls in the Video Analytics engine. 2) Implement strict access control policies limiting which processes and users have high privilege access to the Video Analytics engine and related components, minimizing the risk of privilege misuse. 3) Employ runtime monitoring and anomaly detection on devices to identify unusual access patterns or attempts to access video analytics data beyond authorized scopes. 4) For device manufacturers and integrators, conduct thorough security reviews and testing of access control mechanisms in embedded components, especially those handling sensitive data like video analytics. 5) Use hardware-based security features such as Trusted Execution Environments (TEE) or secure enclaves to isolate sensitive processing and restrict access to video analytics data. 6) Educate administrators and users about the risks of privilege escalation and enforce the principle of least privilege in device management. 7) In environments where patching is delayed, consider network segmentation and limiting physical or local access to vulnerable devices to reduce exploitation chances. 8) Collaborate with Qualcomm and security communities to share threat intelligence and best practices for securing affected platforms.