VulnerabilityPublished 8 Jul 2025

CVE-2025-21454: Qualcomm Snapdragon · Buffer Over-read

Affects Qualcomm SnapdragonSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.5 High.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 17:16 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

7.5High

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

EPSS: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 15% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

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

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

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

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
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: None: There is no loss of confidentiality within the impacted component.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: High: There is total loss of availability, resulting in the attacker being able to fully deny access to resources in the impacted component; this loss is either sustained (while the attacker continues to deliver the attack) or persistent (the condition persists even after the attack has completed). Alternatively, the attacker has the ability to deny some availability, but the loss of availability presents a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component (e.g., the attacker cannot disrupt existing connections, but can prevent new connections; the attacker can repeatedly exploit a vulnerability that, in each instance of a successful attack, leaks a only small amount of memory, but after repeated exploitation causes a service to become completely unavailable).

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 8 Jul 2025
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: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (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

AI-suggested

Mitigation should focus on a multi-layered approach beyond generic patching advice. Organizations should: 1) Monitor vendor communications closely for Qualcomm patches or firmware updates addressing this vulnerability and prioritize timely deployment across all affected devices. 2) Implement network-level filtering to detect and block malformed or suspicious beacon frames, particularly on wireless networks supporting affected devices. 3) Employ intrusion detection/prevention systems (IDS/IPS) tuned to recognize anomalous wireless traffic patterns indicative of exploitation attempts. 4) For critical infrastructure and automotive systems using Qualcomm platforms, consider network segmentation and redundancy to minimize impact from transient DoS events. 5) Engage with device manufacturers and service providers to verify the presence of updated firmware and coordinate vulnerability management. 6) Conduct regular security assessments and penetration testing focused on wireless interfaces to identify exposure. 7) Educate IT and security teams on the specific nature of this vulnerability to enhance incident response readiness. These targeted actions will help reduce the attack surface and limit potential disruption until comprehensive patches are widely deployed.

Description

Transient DOS while processing received beacon frame.

Impact

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2025-21454 could be substantial due to the widespread use of Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets in smartphones, IoT devices, automotive systems, and industrial equipment. A transient denial of service in these devices could lead to temporary loss of connectivity, degraded performance, or system crashes, disrupting business operations, communications, and critical infrastructure. Enterprises relying on mobile connectivity for remote work, IoT telemetry, or automotive telematics may experience service interruptions. In sectors such as telecommunications, manufacturing, healthcare, and transportation, where Qualcomm platforms are embedded, this vulnerability could affect operational continuity and safety. Additionally, the vulnerability’s network-exploitable nature means attackers could remotely trigger DoS conditions without requiring user interaction, increasing the risk of targeted attacks or widespread disruption. Although no confidentiality or integrity impact is noted, availability degradation alone can have cascading effects on dependent systems and services. The lack of current known exploits provides a window for mitigation, but the broad product impact necessitates urgent attention to prevent exploitation as threat actors develop attack methods.

CWE-126Buffer Over-read (opens in a new tab)
Variant weakness
The product reads from a buffer using buffer access mechanisms such as indexes or pointers that reference memory locations after the targeted buffer.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
XML Security (opens in a new tab)
Mass Assignment (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V13.3.1 (opens in a new tab)
V5.1.4 (opens in a new tab)
V5.1.3 (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

docs.qualcomm.com/product/publicresources/securitybulletin/july-2025-bulletin.html (opens in a new tab)

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 8 Jul 2025, 13:13 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-126

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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