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AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2022-36845

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-09-09
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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
A heap-based overflow vulnerability in MHW_RECOG_LIB_INFO function in libSDKRecognitionText.spensdk.samsung.so library prior to SMR Sep-2022 Release 1 allows attacker to cause memory access fault.

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 confidence

Heap-based buffer overflow in the MHW_RECOG_LIB_INFO function within Samsung's proprietary libSDKRecognitionText.spensdk.samsung.so library (S-Pen text recognition SDK) allows an attacker to corrupt heap memory and potentially achieve arbitrary code execution by triggering the overflow through crafted input.

MitigationApply the SMR Sep-2022 Release 1 or later vendor firmware update to patch the vulnerable library; for enterprise deployments, inventory all affected Samsung device models and prioritize patching of devices with S-Pen functionality.

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
AndroidOperating system
Affected:= 10.0= 11.0= 12.0

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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. Confirm Android version
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Android version or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB
    Affected if The version reports 10.0, 11.0, or 12.0 exactly
  2. Locate the vulnerable library
    Check for the presence of libSDKRecognitionText.spensdk.samsung.so in /system/lib/ or /vendor/lib/ directories using ADB: 'find / -name "libSDKRecognitionText.spensdk.samsung.so" 2>/dev/null'
    Affected if The library file exists on the device
  3. Verify S-Pen functionality is present
    Check if the device supports S-Pen by reviewing device specifications, or check for S-Pen related services running: 'dumpsys | grep -i spen' via ADB
    Affected if The device has S-Pen hardware support or S-Pen related services are present
  4. Confirm text recognition component is active
    Look for the S-Pen text recognition service or check for packages using the spensdk: 'dumpsys package_list | grep -i samsung' or 'pm list packages | grep spen' via ADB
    Affected if Samsung S-Pen SDK packages or text recognition services are installed and enabled

A device is affected if it runs Android 10.0, 11.0, or 12.0 AND has the libSDKRecognitionText.spensdk.samsung.so library present with S-Pen functionality enabled.

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 SMR Sep-2022 Release 1 or later vendor firmware update to patch the vulnerable library; for enterprise deployments, inventory all affected Samsung device models and prioritize patching of devices with S-Pen functionality.

Recommended fix High confidence

SMR Sep-2022 Release 1 (or later security maintenance release)

  1. Check the current Android version and security patch level on the Samsung device in Settings > About Phone > Software Information
  2. Navigate to Settings > Software Update on the Samsung device
  3. Download and install the September 2022 Security Maintenance Release (SMR Sep-2022 Release 1) or any subsequent security update
  4. After the update completes, verify the security patch level reflects September 2022 or later in Settings > About Phone > Software Information

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

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,940
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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-2022-36845 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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