CVE-2018-21068
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 O(8.0) software. Execution of an application in a locked Secure Folder can occur without a password via a split screen. The Samsung ID is SVE-2018-11669 (July 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 · moderate confidenceSamsung mobile devices running Android O (8.0) contain a vulnerability (SVE-2018-11669) that allows execution of applications within a locked Secure Folder without requiring password authentication by exploiting the split screen feature, enabling unauthorized access to protected content.
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= 8.0CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/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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Check Android versionGo to Settings > About Phone > Android version or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADBAffected if Version is exactly 8.0 (Android O)
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Verify device manufacturerCheck Settings > About Phone > Manufacturer/Make or run 'getprop ro.product.manufacturer' via ADBAffected if Device is a Samsung device (the vulnerability applies specifically to Samsung implementations)
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Confirm Secure Folder presenceCheck if Secure Folder app is installed and configured in Settings > Lock and security > Secure Folder, or locate /data/system_ce/0/su/com.sec.android.app.launcher/containers/securefolder/ via ADB shellAffected if Secure Folder is enabled and has been set up on the device
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Verify split screen is enabledCheck Settings > Advanced features > Split screen, or attempt to enter split screen mode by holding the recents buttonAffected if Split screen functionality is available and has been used/enabled on the device
User is affected if running Android 8.0 on a Samsung device with Secure Folder enabled and split screen functionality available, as the exploit chains these three conditions to bypass Secure Folder authentication.
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 affected Samsung devices running Android O (8.0) and consider disabling split screen functionality via MDM until Samsung releases an official firmware patch.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-21068 — 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-2018-21068 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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