dbcve.org
Exynos Modem 5300 FirmwareOperating system · Samsung

CVE-2023-26498

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-03-23
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges 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
An issue was discovered in Samsung Baseband Modem Chipset for Exynos Modem 5123, Exynos Modem 5300, Exynos 980, Exynos 1080, Exynos Auto T5126. Memory corruption can occur due to improper checking of the number of properties while parsing the chatroom attribute in the SDP (Session Description Protocol) module.

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

Memory corruption vulnerability in Samsung Exynos baseband modem firmware's SDP (Session Description Protocol) parser. The chatroom attribute parsing code fails to properly validate the number of properties before processing, allowing an attacker to trigger buffer overflows or out-of-bounds memory writes. This affects multiple Exynos modem variants (5123, 5300, 980, 1080, Auto T5126) used in mobile devices.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied baseband firmware updates from Samsung and/or mobile carriers. Until patches are available, limit device exposure to untrusted networks and monitor for anomalous modem behavior.

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
Exynos Modem 5300 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Exynos Modem 5123 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Exynos 980 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Exynos 1080 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Exynos Auto T5123 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify your device's modem chipset
    Check the device specifications: look at the phone model and search for the modem chipset it uses. Common affected devices include Samsung Galaxy phones with Exynos 980, 1080, 5123, or 5300 modems. You can find this in Settings > About Phone > Modem version or by searching your device model specifications online.
    Affected if The device uses an Exynos 980, 1080, 5123, 5300, or Auto T5123/5126 modem chipset
  2. Check the baseband firmware version
    On the device, go to Settings > About Phone > Modem Version (or Baseband Version). Record the exact version string shown. Compare this against Samsung's firmware release notes if available.
    Affected if The baseband version string corresponds to an affected Exynos modem firmware (all versions of these modems are affected per the advisory)
  3. Determine if the device uses VoLTE or RCS services
    Check if the device has Voice over LTE (VoLTE) or Rich Communication Services (RCS) enabled. Go to Settings > Connections > Mobile Networks > VoLTE, or Settings > Network & Internet > Calls > VoLTE. These services trigger SDP parsing in the modem.
    Affected if VoLTE or RCS is enabled - the vulnerability exists in the SDP chatroom attribute parser which is invoked during these signaling operations
  4. Verify carrier network registration
    Check if the device successfully registers on a cellular network. Look at the signal bars in the status bar or go to Settings > Connections > Mobile Networks > Network Operators. The modem must be actively connected for the vulnerable SDP parsing code to process incoming session descriptions.
    Affected if The device registers and communicates on a 4G/5G network - the SDP parser processes network messages containing chatroom attributes during call setup

A user is affected if their device contains one of the listed Exynos modem chipsets (5123, 5300, 980, 1080, Auto T5123/5126) and uses cellular network services, as all firmware versions of these modems contain the vulnerable SDP chatroom attribute parser.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply vendor-supplied baseband firmware updates from Samsung and/or mobile carriers. Until patches are available, limit device exposure to untrusted networks and monitor for anomalous modem behavior.

Fix this in Exynos Modem 5300 Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation12.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing16.0 h
  • Review / QA8.0 h
44.0 hours of engineering $7,680
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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-2023-26498 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
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