dbcve.org
ExynosHardware / appliance · Samsung

CVE-2020-10835

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-03-24
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
An issue was discovered on Samsung mobile devices with any (before February 2020 for Exynos modem chipsets) software. There is a buffer overflow in baseband CP message decoding. The Samsung IDs are SVE-2019-15816 and SVE-2019-15817 (February 2020).

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 confidence

A buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the baseband CP (Call Processor) message decoding functionality of Samsung mobile devices equipped with Exynos modem chipsets. This flaw allows malformed cellular network messages to trigger overflow conditions, potentially enabling remote code execution in the baseband processor context.

MitigationApply the vendor patch released in February 2020 (Samsung SVE-2019-15816 and SVE-2019-15817) by updating device software to the latest available version. Users of affected devices should also coordinate with their mobile carriers for any baseband/firmware updates.

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
ExynosHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions

CVSS 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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify Exynos modem chipset
    Check device specifications in Settings > About Phone > Hardware Information, or view /proc/cpuinfo on the device to confirm the chipset model
    Affected if Device uses an Exynos chipset for cellular baseband processing
  2. Check baseband firmware version
    Dial *#0011# or *#1234# to access service mode, or check Settings > About Phone > Baseband version. Record the baseband/modem version string
    Affected if Baseband version is present (indicating Exynos modem is in use)
  3. Verify security patch level
    Navigate to Settings > About Phone > Software Information > Security patch level. Note the date of the installed security update
    Affected if Security patch level is earlier than February 2020 or patch date is unknown/unavailable
  4. Check carrier baseband update status
    Contact mobile carrier support or check carrier-specific settings to verify if baseband/firmware update has been applied
    Affected if Carrier indicates no recent baseband firmware update has been pushed

A user is affected if they own a Samsung device with an Exynos modem chipset and the device security patch level predates the February 2020 update (SVE-2019-15816/15817), indicating the baseband buffer overflow vulnerability remains unpatched.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the vendor patch released in February 2020 (Samsung SVE-2019-15816 and SVE-2019-15817) by updating device software to the latest available version. Users of affected devices should also coordinate with their mobile carriers for any baseband/firmware updates.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Any Samsung Exynos device running software with Security Patch Level February 2020 or later (SVE-2019-15816 and SVE-2019-15817 addressed)

  1. 1. Check your current Samsung device software version in Settings > About Phone > Software Information
  2. 2. Verify if your device has received the February 2020 security patch or later by checking Settings > About Phone > Software Information > Security patch level
  3. 3. If the security patch level is before February 2020, check for system updates: go to Settings > Software Update > Download and install
  4. 4. If no update is available, contact your device manufacturer or carrier for patch availability
  5. 5. For enterprise/managed devices, ensure mobile device management (MDM) policies allow and prompt for security updates
Caveat Standard security update risks apply - ensure backups before updating; some legacy carrier configurations may need reconfiguration after major updates

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Exynos Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation40.0 h
  • Testing24.0 h
  • Review / QA8.0 h
80.0 hours of engineering $13,840
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2020-10835 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • 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