CVE-2021-25502
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 vulnerability of storing sensitive information insecurely in Property Settings prior to SMR Nov-2021 Release 1 allows attackers to read ESN value without priviledge.
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 confidenceSamsung Mobile Devices (SMR) prior to November 2021 Release 1 contain a vulnerability where the Electronic Serial Number (ESN) is stored insecurely in Property Settings, allowing unauthenticated attackers to read this sensitive identifier without any privilege or authentication.
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= 8.1= 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/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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Confirm device manufacturer is SamsungRun 'getprop ro.product.manufacturer' or check device Settings > About Phone > ManufacturerAffected if Manufacturer is not Samsung (this vulnerability is Samsung-specific)
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Check Android OS versionRun 'getprop ro.build.version.release' or check Settings > About Phone > Android versionAffected if Version is 8.1, 9.0, 10.0, or 11.0 (these are the affected versions)
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Check Samsung Security Patch LevelRun 'getprop ro.build.version.security_patch' or check Settings > About Phone > Android security patch levelAffected if Patch level is earlier than 2021-11-01 (vulnerability patched in November 2021 SMR)
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Verify SMR (Samsung Maintenance Release) versionRun 'getprop ro.build.version.sem' or check Settings > About Phone > Software info > SMR (Samsung Maintenance Release)Affected if SMR version is earlier than Nov-2021 Release 1
A Samsung device running Android 8.1 through 11.0 with a Samsung Security Patch Level or SMR version earlier than November 2021 is affected by this vulnerability.
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 Nov-2021 Release 1 security patch or later to remediate the insecure storage of ESN in Property Settings. For enterprise deployments, ensure all managed devices receive and install this security update.
SMR Nov-2021 Release 1 (November 2021 Security Patch)
- Open Settings on your Samsung Android device
- Scroll down and tap on 'Software update'
- Tap on 'Download and install' to check for available updates
- Ensure the device updates to the November 2021 security patch level (SMR Nov-2021 Release 1)
- After updating, verify the security patch level by going to Settings > About phone > Software information > Security patch level
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing2.0 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 $1,376.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-25502 — 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-2021-25502 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data