CVE-2019-20544
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.x) and P(9.0) (Exynos chipsets) software. There is an out-of-bounds write in the ICCC Trustlet. The Samsung ID is SVE-2019-15274 (November 2019).
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 confidenceOut-of-bounds write vulnerability in the ICCC Trustlet on Samsung mobile devices with Android O (8.x) and P (9.0) running Exynos chipsets. The ICCC (Inter-Component Communication Manager) Trustlet handles secure communication between software components, and the write outside allocated memory boundaries can lead to memory corruption, potentially enabling privilege escalation or arbitrary code execution in a trusted execution environment.
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= 8.0= 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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Confirm device is a Samsung mobile deviceCheck the device manufacturer and model in Settings > About Phone. Only Samsung devices are affected.Affected if Device is not a Samsung-branded phone or tablet
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Verify Android version is 8.0, 8.1, or 9.0Check Settings > About Phone > Android version. The vulnerability affects Android 8.0, 8.1, and 9.0 only.Affected if Android version is outside 8.0-9.0 range (e.g., Android 10 or later)
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Confirm device uses an Exynos chipsetCheck device specifications or use a system info app to identify the chipset. Samsung Exynos variants are affected; Qualcomm Snapdragon variants are not in scope for this CVE.Affected if Device uses a non-Exynos chipset (e.g., Qualcomm) or chipset cannot be determined
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Check Samsung security patch levelCheck Settings > About Phone > Security patch level. Look for the patch date. The fix is in Samsung security patch SVE-2019-15274 (November 2019).Affected if Security patch level is earlier than November 2019 or patch level is unknown
A device is affected if it is a Samsung device with Android 8.0-9.0, uses an Exynos chipset, and has a security patch level earlier than November 2019.
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 the Samsung security patch SVE-2019-15274 (November 2019) via firmware update from Samsung. Users should ensure their devices are running the latest Samsung-provided security update that addresses this vulnerability.
Samsung security update (November 2019 patch level or later) for affected Exynos chipset devices running Android 8.0, 8.1, or 9.0
- Check your Samsung device model and carrier/region variant
- Navigate to Settings > About Phone > Software Update on the device
- Ensure the device is connected to Wi-Fi and has sufficient battery
- Check for and install any available security updates
- Alternatively, check security.samsungmobile.com for SVE-2019-15274 details and verify your device's security patch level includes the November 2019 security bulletin
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- 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-2019-20544 — 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-2019-20544 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