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Use-after-free LPE in Pixel /dev/bigwave driver

IdentifiersCVE-2025-36934CWE-416· Use After Free

CVE-2025-36934 is a use-after-free vulnerability in bigo_worker_thread in private/google-modules/video/gchips/bigo.c, part of the Google Pixel BigWave/AV1 acceleration driver exposed via /dev/bigwave. The flaw is caused by a race condition that can leave code operating on freed memory. Project Zero reported the bug as the kernel-privilege-escalation stage of a Pixel 9 exploit chain: after achieving code execution in the sandboxed mediacodec process, the attacker pivots to the reachable /dev/bigwave driver and exploits this bug to escape the sandbox and gain kernel-level primitives.

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ANALYST BRIEF

Impact, mitigation & remediation

What it means. What to do now. Patch path, mitigations, and the assume-compromise checklist.

Impact

What an attacker gets, and what they’ve been doing with it.

Successful exploitation can result in local escalation of privilege on affected Pixel devices. In the documented exploit chain, the bug was used to escape the mediacodec sandbox and obtain kernel arbitrary read/write or equivalent kernel-level primitives, enabling full kernel compromise. No user interaction is required once the attacker has a path to the vulnerable driver.

Mitigation

If you can’t patch tonight, do this now.

Until patches are deployed, reduce exposure by limiting access from remotely reachable or untrusted app contexts to media-decoding and hardware-acceleration paths, and keep messaging and media-processing applications fully updated. More broadly, minimize the set of kernel drivers reachable from sandboxed components such as mediacodec. Specific temporary vendor mitigations beyond patching are not provided in the content.

Remediation

Patch, then assume compromise.

Apply the Android/Pixel security updates that address CVE-2025-36934. The provided content states Pixel devices received patches for the chain in January 2026, with the relevant Pixel fix released on January 6, 2026. Ensure affected devices are updated to a build containing that fix or later vendor-supplied security updates.
PUBLIC EXPLOITS

Exploits

No public exploits tracked yet. Mallory keeps watching.

VALID 0 / 0 TOTALView more in app

No public exploit code observed for this vulnerability.

EXPOSURE SURFACE

Affected products & vendors

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VendorProductType
GoogleAndroidoperating_system

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What this page doesn’t show

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Exposure mapping

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Threat actor evidence

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Associated malware

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Detection signatures

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Vendor-by-vendor mapping

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Social activity7

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