Certain Exynos-powered Samsung Galaxy phones were attacked by a 'commercial surveillance vendor' according to Google's Project Zero.
), a trio of zero-day vulnerabilities in some newer Samsung Galaxy phones was being exploited by a commercial surveillance vendor. These companies could be telecom or tech firms tracking their customers for the purpose of monetizing personal data by sending custom advertising. Or it could be more sinister .According to the, such companies engage in the"collection, aggregation, analysis, retention, transfer, or monetization of consumer data and the direct derivatives of that information.
The exploit targets Samsung Galaxy handsets powered by an Exynos SoC using kernel 4.14.113. Phones matching that description include the Samsung Galaxy S10, Galaxy A50, and the Galaxy A51. Versions of those phones sold in the U.S. and China are equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset while in most other continents like Europe and Africa, the Exynos SoC is used.
The problems would start when a user was tricked into sideloading an app on his phone. Sideloading in this case means downloading an app from a third-party Android app store that is not the Google Play Store. Google did report toabout the vulnerabilities in 2020 and while Sammy did send out a patch in March 2021, the company failed to mention that the vulnerabilities were being actively exploited.
Google's Maddie Stone, who wrote the blog post, says,"The analysis of this exploit chain has provided us with new and important insights into how attackers are targeting Android devices. Stone also pointed out that with more research, new vulnerabilities could be discovered in custom software used on Android devices by phone manufacturers like Samsung. Stone added,"It highlights a need for more research into manufacturer specific components.
One quick and dirty rule that might still work these days is to give the comments section a good look before installing an app from a developer you've never heard of before. If any red flags show up, quickly run away from that app's listing and never look back. Another great piece of advice is not to sideload any app.
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