CVE-2021-25382
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 improper authorization of using debugging command in Secure Folder prior to SMR Oct-2020 Release 1 allows unauthorized access to contents in Secure Folder via debugging command.
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 confidenceThis is a Samsung mobile device vulnerability in Secure Folder where improper authorization checks on debugging commands allow unauthorized access to contents stored in the secure container. An attacker with physical access to the device could use debugging commands to bypass authentication and view data within Secure Folder. The vulnerability affects devices running versions prior to Samsung's SMR Oct-2020 Release 1.
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= 9.0= 10.0= 11.0CVSS 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
- Physical
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/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 manufacturerCheck if the device is a Samsung device (Secure Folder is a Samsung-specific feature). Go to Settings > About Phone > Manufacturer or Model.Affected if Device is not a Samsung device (Secure Folder does not exist on non-Samsung devices)
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Verify Android versionNavigate to Settings > About Phone > Android version. Confirm the installed Android version is 8.0, 8.1, 9.0, 10.0, or 11.0.Affected if Android version is 8.0, 8.1, 9.0, 10.0, or 11.0 (these are the affected versions)
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Confirm Secure Folder is configuredCheck if Secure Folder exists on the device by looking for the Secure Folder app in the app drawer or Settings > Biometrics and security > Secure Folder.Affected if Secure Folder is present and has been set up on the device (the vulnerability requires Secure Folder to be in use)
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Check security patch levelNavigate to Settings > About Phone > Security patch level. Compare the date to the SMR Oct-2020 Release 1 (October 2020) security update.Affected if Security patch level is earlier than October 2020, meaning the device has not received the fix for this vulnerability
User is affected if they have a Samsung device running Android 8.0-11.0 with Secure Folder configured and a security patch level dated before October 2020.
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 dataApply the Samsung SMR Oct-2020 Release 1 security update or later to affected devices to patch the improper authorization vulnerability in Secure Folder debugging commands.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-25382 — 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-2021-25382 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