CVE-2025-27053: Qualcomm 315 5G IoT Modem Use After Free

CVE-2025-27053 Overview

CVE-2025-27053 is a memory corruption vulnerability in Qualcomm chipsets affecting the PlayReady trusted application (TA) command processing path. The flaw is classified under CWE-131: Incorrect Calculation of Buffer Size. An authenticated local attacker with low privileges can trigger the corruption while the PlayReady digital rights management application processes commands sent to the Trusted Execution Environment (TEE). Qualcomm addressed the issue in the October 2025 security bulletin. The vulnerability affects hundreds of Snapdragon, QCA, QCS, and modem firmware components spanning mobile, automotive, IoT, wearable, and compute platforms.

Critical Impact
Local exploitation can corrupt trusted memory during PlayReady TA command handling, leading to loss of confidentiality, integrity, and availability on the affected device.

Affected Products

Qualcomm Snapdragon mobile platforms (Snapdragon 8 Gen 1/2/3, 8+ Gen 1/2, 888, 865, 855, 845, and earlier)
Qualcomm automotive platforms (SA8155P, SA8195P, SA8255P, SA8295P, SA8540P, SA8620P, SA8650P, SA8770P, SA8775P)
Qualcomm modem, compute, wearable, IoT, and FastConnect firmware (Snapdragon X55/X62/X65/X72/X75, QCM/QCS/QCN series, FastConnect 6200–7800)

Discovery Timeline

2025-10-09 - CVE-2025-27053 published to the National Vulnerability Database (NVD)
October 2025 - Qualcomm publishes the October 2025 Security Bulletin with fixes
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-27053

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability resides in the code path that processes Trusted Application (TA) commands for the PlayReady DRM use case running inside the Qualcomm Trusted Execution Environment. When the PlayReady TA parses command parameters supplied from the non-secure world, a buffer size is calculated incorrectly. The resulting mismatch between the allocated buffer and the data written or read produces memory corruption inside the trusted world.

Because the corruption occurs within a trusted application, successful exploitation can undermine the isolation guarantees that separate the Rich Execution Environment from the TEE. An attacker who already holds low-privilege local execution on the device can craft malicious TA command payloads to reach the vulnerable handler.

Root Cause

The root cause is an incorrect calculation of buffer size (CWE-131) during PlayReady TA command processing. Length or size fields provided by the caller are not validated against the destination buffer, so subsequent memory operations write or read outside the intended bounds.

Attack Vector

Exploitation requires local access with low privileges and no user interaction. An attacker with the ability to invoke the PlayReady TA (typically through a client process that opens a session with the trusted application via QSEECom or SMC-mediated interfaces) submits a crafted command. The malformed command triggers the miscalculated allocation and corrupts memory associated with the TA context.

The vulnerability is not remotely reachable over a network. However, on Android and automotive platforms, any application or compromised service with permission to communicate with the PlayReady TA can serve as the exploitation stepping stone.

No verified public exploit code is available for CVE-2025-27053.
Refer to the Qualcomm October 2025 Security Bulletin for advisory-level detail.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-27053

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected crashes, resets, or panics originating from the PlayReady trusted application or the QSEE/TEE subsystem
Kernel or bootloader logs showing SMC call failures or TA termination during DRM-related workflows
Anomalous DRM playback failures correlated with unprivileged processes issuing repeated TA commands

Detection Strategies

Inventory affected Qualcomm chipsets and firmware baselines using the Qualcomm October 2025 bulletin as the authoritative reference
Correlate device telemetry for repeated TA session opens, oversized command buffers, or malformed parameter lengths against the PlayReady TA
Monitor mobile device management (MDM) and endpoint telemetry for firmware/patch level regressions on Snapdragon, automotive, and IoT devices

Monitoring Recommendations

Track patch level compliance across Android and automotive fleets and alert when devices fall behind the October 2025 Qualcomm security patch level
Ingest device logs into a centralized log platform and build detections for repeated TA crash signatures or unusual DRM subsystem restarts
Restrict which applications on managed devices are permitted to interact with DRM/TEE interfaces and audit deviations

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-27053

Immediate Actions Required

Apply the vendor firmware updates referenced in the Qualcomm October 2025 Security Bulletin as they are released by OEMs
Identify all affected Snapdragon, automotive, IoT, and modem devices in the environment and prioritize devices that process untrusted third-party applications
Restrict installation of untrusted applications on devices that expose PlayReady TA interfaces to unprivileged callers

Patch Information

Qualcomm published fixes as part of the October 2025 security bulletin. Downstream OEMs (Google, Samsung, and automotive/IoT integrators) must incorporate the patched firmware into their monthly security updates. Consult the Qualcomm October 2025 Security Bulletin for the authoritative list of updated components.

Workarounds

No official workaround has been published; applying the vendor patch is the only supported remediation
Where patching is delayed, reduce risk by restricting local application installation and limiting access to DRM/TEE client interfaces on managed devices
For automotive and IoT deployments, coordinate with the OEM to schedule out-of-band firmware updates for exposed devices

bash

# Example: verify Android security patch level on managed devices
adb shell getprop ro.build.version.security_patch

# Example: check vendor firmware fingerprint
adb shell getprop ro.vendor.build.fingerprint