CVE-2021-25475
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 · uneditedA possible heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in DSP kernel driver prior to SMR Oct-2021 Release 1 allows arbitrary memory write and code execution.
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 confidenceHeap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in the DSP kernel driver allows an attacker to write arbitrary memory and achieve code execution. This is a privilege escalation issue within the kernel space of Samsung mobile devices.
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= 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/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 via Settings > About Phone > Manufacturer/Model, or run: getprop ro.product.manufacturerAffected if Device is not a Samsung mobile device (this vulnerability affects Samsung-specific kernel components)
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Verify Android version is 10.0 or 11.0Check Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run: getprop ro.build.version.releaseAffected if Android version is 10.0 or 11.0 (these are the affected versions per the CVE)
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Confirm DSP kernel driver is presentCheck for the DSP driver module in /system/lib/modules or /vendor/lib/modules, or run: ls -la /dev/dsp* or check /proc/modules for dsp-related entriesAffected if DSP kernel driver exists on the device (the vulnerability is in this specific driver)
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Check Samsung security patch levelRun: getprop ro.build.version.security_patch or check Settings > About Phone > Security patch levelAffected if Security patch level is earlier than October 2021 (vulnerable) or not visible/empty (may indicate unpatched state)
User is affected if the device is a Samsung mobile running Android 10.0 or 11.0 with a DSP kernel driver present and a security patch level earlier than October 2021.
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 SMR Oct-2021 Release 1 security update to affected Samsung devices to patch the vulnerable DSP kernel driver.
SMR Oct-2021 Release 1 (October 2021 Security Patch Level)
- Check your Samsung device for system updates
- Navigate to Settings > About Phone > Software Update
- Tap 'Download and Install' to check for the October 2021 security update
- Install the SMR Oct-2021 Release 1 (or newer) update which contains the fix for CVE-2021-25475
- Restart the device after the update completes
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-25475 — 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-2021-25475 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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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.
- 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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