Recently, the Google Project reported 18 zero-day vulnerabilities in the Exynos modem. Of these vulnerabilities, four were found to be critical. As this is a modem issue, vulnerabilities could exploit internet-to-baseband remote code execution. This would allow attackers to remotely compromise your device at the base level without user interaction.
For this to happen, an attacker would need the device’s mobile number. The other 14 vulnerabilities require either a malicious mobile network operator or an attacker with local access to the device.
List of Devices Affected by the Exynos Security Flaw
This flaw has affected the Exynos Modem used in the Exynos 850, Exynos 1280, and Exynos 2200.
- Samsung S22, M33, M13, M12, A71, A53, A33, A21, A13, A12, and A04 series devices;
- Vivo S16, S15, S6, X70, X60, and X30 series devices;
- Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 7 series devices;
- Any wearable devices with the Exynos W920 chipset;
- Any vehicles with the Exynos Auto T5123 chipset.
Google has already rolled out a security update to all affected Pixel devices, and the Pixel 6 is expected to receive this update by March 20. Here’s how you can protect your device until Samsung patches the Exynos security flaw: it is advised that users disable Wi-Fi calling and VoLTE (Voice-Over-LTE).
However, due to security concerns, Google hasn’t disclosed all zero-day vulnerabilities. Samsung is working on an update that could be rolled out to affected devices quite soon.
Disable Wi-Fi Calling Settings might vary based on your OS.
- Open Device Settings and head over to Connections.
- Tap on Wi-Fi Calling. There, you will have the option to toggle or disable Wi-Fi calling.
Once you have disabled Wi-Fi calling, you can proceed with disabling VoLTE (Voice-Over-LTE) on your device.
Disable Voice-Over-LTE (VoLTE).
- Open Device Settings and head over to Connections.
- From there, go to Mobile Network.
- Next, disable 4G calls on your SIMs.
- It is recommended to use 3G or 2G auto-calls.
That’s all you can do for security measures to protect your device from vulnerabilities. Hopefully, Samsung will start rolling out a patch update to fix this issue as soon as possible. Until then, we hope this guide remains helpful for you. Thanks for being with us. We would like to know your valuable opinion and feedback. If there are any queries, share them with us in the comment section below. Stay tuned for more updates in the future.