CVE-2021-25424
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 · uneditedImproper authentication vulnerability in Tizen bluetooth-frwk prior to Firmware update JUN-2021 Release allows bluetooth attacker to take over the user's bluetooth device without user awareness.
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 confidenceImproper authentication vulnerability in Tizen's bluetooth-frwk allows a remote Bluetooth attacker to bypass authentication checks and take control of paired Bluetooth devices without user awareness. The vulnerability exists in the Bluetooth framework component prior to the June 2021 firmware release.
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< 5.5< 5.5< 5.5< 5.5< 5.5< 5.5< 5.5< 5.5CVSS 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
- Adjacent
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:A/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 your device modelCheck the device settings or packaging to confirm the exact model (e.g., Galaxy Watch Active 2, Galaxy Watch 3, Gear S3, etc.)Affected if The device is one of the listed affected models: Galaxy Watch Active 2, Galaxy Watch Active, Galaxy Watch, Galaxy Watch 3, Gear S3, Gear S2, Gear S, or Gear 2
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Check the installed firmware versionNavigate to Settings > About Device > Software Information on the wearable, or check via the companion smartphone app (Galaxy Wearable) under Device Information > Software VersionAffected if The firmware version displayed is below 5.5 (for example, 5.4.x, 5.3.x, etc.)
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Verify the Bluetooth framework componentConfirm Bluetooth functionality is enabled and the device has been paired with other Bluetooth devices. The vulnerability exists in the bluetooth-frwk component which handles Bluetooth pairing and authentication.Affected if Bluetooth is enabled and the device has paired devices, making the authentication bypass relevant
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Confirm firmware is pre-June 2021Check the firmware build date if visible in the software information, or note that any version below 5.5 corresponds to releases prior to the June 2021 patchAffected if The firmware version is < 5.5, indicating it was released before the June 2021 security update
You are affected if you own one of the listed Samsung Tizen wearables and your current firmware version is below 5.5, meaning the device has not received the June 2021 security patch that addresses the bluetooth-frwk authentication bypass.
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 · scoped5.5
Apply the June 2021 or later firmware update for Tizen devices to patch the bluetooth-frwk component. Users should verify their device firmware is up to date.
Firmware 5.5 (JUN-2021 Release) or later
- 1. Open the Samsung Wearables app (Galaxy Wearable) on the paired smartphone
- 2. Navigate to the device settings (tap on your watch/Gear device)
- 3. Scroll down and tap on 'Watch software update'
- 4. Tap on 'Download and install' to check for available updates
- 5. If an update is available, ensure the device is charging and connected to Wi-Fi, then proceed with the installation
- 6. After the update completes, verify the firmware version is 5.5 or higher in the same menu
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-25424 — 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-2021-25424 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