CVE-2018-21057
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 N(7.x) O(8.x, and P(9.0) (Exynos chipsets) software. There is a stack-based buffer overflow in the Shannon Baseband. The Samsung ID is SVE-2018-12757 (September 2018).
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 stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the Shannon Baseband processor firmware on Samsung mobile devices equipped with Exynos chipsets running Android N (7.x), O (8.x), and P (9.0). This memory corruption vulnerability in the baseband subsystem could allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service.
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= 7.0= 7.1.0= 7.1.1= 7.1.2= 8.0= 8.1= 9.0CVSS 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
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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 chipset architectureCheck if the device uses an Exynos chipset by reviewing the model number in Settings > About Phone, or by examining /proc/cpuinfo for Exynos references, or using a system info app like CPU-ZAffected if Device is not a Samsung model with Exynos chipset - the vulnerability only affects Exynos-based Samsung devices
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Confirm Android versionNavigate to Settings > About Phone > Android version and verify the installed versionAffected if Android version is 7.0, 7.1.0, 7.1.1, 7.1.2, 8.0, 8.1, or 9.0 - versions outside this range are not affected
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Check security patch levelNavigate to Settings > About Phone > Security patch level to view the installed patch dateAffected if Security patch level is dated September 2018 or earlier, indicating the SVE-2018-12757 fix has not been applied
Device is affected if it is a Samsung device with Exynos chipset running Android 7.x-9.0 and the security patch level predates the September 2018 update.
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.
dbcve · scopedApply Samsung's September 2018 security patch (SVE-2018-12757) via official OTA updates. For out-of-support devices, consider device replacement or implement network-level controls to reduce attack surface.
Samsung security update with SVE-2018-12757 resolved (September 2018 SMR or later)
- Check for available Samsung security updates on your device via Settings > Software update > Download and install
- Ensure your device is running the latest Samsung security patch level (September 2018 or later for SVE-2018-12757)
- If no update is available, contact your device manufacturer or carrier for patch availability
- For affected devices, Samsung typically includes this fix in monthly security maintenance releases (SMR)
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation8.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing12.0 h
- Review / QA6.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $8,320.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-21057 — 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-2018-21057 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data