CVE-2016-11046
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedAn issue was discovered on Samsung mobile devices with JBP(4.3), KK(4.4), and L(5.0/5.1) software. Because of a misused whitelist, attackers can reach the radio layer (aka RIL or RILD) to place calls or send SMS messages. The Samsung ID is SVE-2016-5733 (May 2016).
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceA whitelist misconfiguration in Samsung mobile devices running Android JBP (4.3), KK (4.4), and L (5.0/5.1) allows unauthorized applications to bypass access controls and communicate directly with the Radio Interface Layer (RIL/RILD). This enables attackers to place phone calls and send SMS messages without user consent or proper authentication.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data= 4.3= 4.4= 5.0= 5.1CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify device manufacturer and modelCheck Settings > About Phone > Device info to confirm the device is a Samsung mobile deviceAffected if Device is made by Samsung
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Check Android versionNavigate to Settings > About Phone > Android version to determine the installed OS versionAffected if Android version is 4.3, 4.4, 5.0, or 5.1
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Verify RIL/RILD component configurationInspect system configuration files related to Radio Interface Layer (RIL/RILD) for whitelist settings that control which applications can access the radio interfaceAffected if The whitelist is misconfigured allowing unauthorized app access to RIL/RILD
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Audit installed applicationsReview application permissions, particularly any apps with telephony or SMS capabilities that were not installed by the user or do not require user confirmationAffected if Unexpected applications have direct RIL access or can place calls/send SMS without user interaction
A Samsung device running Android 4.3, 4.4, 5.0, or 5.1 with a misconfigured RIL/RILD whitelist that permits unauthorized application access to radio functions is affected by this vulnerability.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataOrganizations should identify and retire or isolate any remaining affected Samsung devices (Android 4.3-5.1) as they no longer receive security updates. Where device replacement is not feasible, implement mobile device management (MDM) policies to restrict application permissions and monitor for suspicious call/SMS activity.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-11046 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2016-11046 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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