dbcve.org
AndroidOperating system · Samsung

CVE-2024-20816

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-02-06
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
70/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
Improper authentication vulnerability in onCharacteristicWriteRequest in Auto Hotspot prior to SMR Feb-2024 Release 1 allows adjacent attackers connect to victim's mobile hotspot 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 · high confidence

This is an improper authentication vulnerability in Android Auto Hotspot's BLE GATT server handler (onCharacteristicWriteRequest). An adjacent attacker within Bluetooth range can exploit insufficient authentication checks during characteristic write requests to connect to the victim's mobile hotspot without user awareness or consent.

MitigationApply the SMR Feb-2024 Release 1 patch which adds proper authentication validation in the onCharacteristicWriteRequest callback to ensure only authorized devices can trigger hotspot connections.

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:= 11.0= 12.0= 13.0= 14.0

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/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 checks

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

  1. Verify Samsung Android version
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Android version, or run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' via ADB shell
    Affected if Version displays 11.0, 12.0, 13.0, or 14.0
  2. Confirm device is Samsung
    Go to Settings > About Phone > Manufacturer/Model, or run 'getprop ro.product.manufacturer'
    Affected if Manufacturer shows Samsung
  3. Check Android Auto app presence
    Locate Android Auto app in app drawer or run 'pm list packages | grep androidauto' via ADB
    Affected if Android Auto app is installed and enabled
  4. Verify Hotspot feature availability
    Go to Settings > Network & Internet > Hotspot & Tethering, or check if 'android.permission.TETHER_PRIVILEGED' is present
    Affected if Mobile hotspot functionality is present and was never patched
  5. Confirm BLE is active
    Check Bluetooth is enabled in Settings, or run 'settings get global bluetooth_on' via ADB
    Affected if Bluetooth is turned on, enabling the BLE GATT server attack surface

Device is affected if it is a Samsung Android running version 11.0 through 14.0 with Android Auto and Bluetooth hotspot functionality enabled, as the vulnerable BLE GATT server handler accepts unauthenticated characteristic write requests.

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 Feb-2024 Release 1 patch which adds proper authentication validation in the onCharacteristicWriteRequest callback to ensure only authorized devices can trigger hotspot connections.

Recommended fix High confidence

Samsung SMR (Security Maintenance Release) February 2024

  1. 1. Check your current Samsung device model and its Android version by going to Settings > About Phone
  2. 2. Navigate to Settings > Software Update and tap on Download and install
  3. 3. Ensure you connect to Wi-Fi and have sufficient battery (above 50%) before checking for updates
  4. 4. Download and install any available Samsung security updates
  5. 5. After installation, verify the device has updated to SMR Feb-2024 Release 1 by checking Settings > About Phone > Software Information > Security patch level

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

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
21.0 hours of engineering $3,680
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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-2024-20816 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
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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