CVE-2026-20969
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 · uneditedImproper input validation in SecSettings prior to SMR Jan-2026 Release 1 allows local attacker to access file with system privilege. User interaction is required for triggering this vulnerability.
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 · moderate confidenceImproper input validation in SecSettings (Samsung mobile device settings component) prior to SMR Jan-2026 Release 1 allows a local attacker to access files with system privileges. The vulnerability requires user interaction (likely involving the victim interacting with a malicious link or crafted input within SecSettings) to trigger the file access with elevated privileges.
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= 13.0= 14.0= 15.0= 16.0CVSS 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
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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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Check the Samsung Android versionGo to Settings > About Phone > Software Information and verify the Android version or One UI version matches 13.0, 14.0, 15.0, or 16.0 exactlyAffected if The installed version is exactly 13.0, 14.0, 15.0, or 16.0 and the SMR Jan-2026 Release 1 patch has not been applied
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Verify SecSettings component is accessibleLocate the SecSettings application in the Samsung device settings (typically under Settings > Security or as a Samsung system settings module). Check if it is enabled and can be opened by a local userAffected if SecSettings is present and accessible without administrative restrictions on the device
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Confirm the device has not received the SMR Jan-2026 patchGo to Settings > Security > Security policy update or check the Samsung security patch level in About Phone > Software Information. Verify the patch date is earlier than January 2026 or the SMR version is earlier than SMR Jan-2026 Release 1Affected if The security patch level shows a date before January 2026 or the SMR version does not indicate the Jan-2026 Release 1 update
A device is affected if it runs Samsung Android version 13.0, 14.0, 15.0, or 16.0, has the SecSettings component accessible, and is missing the SMR Jan-2026 Release 1 security patch.
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 Jan-2026 Release 1 security patch to SecSettings, which addresses the input validation flaw. As a defense-in-depth measure, restrict system-level file permissions and monitor for anomalous file access from user-facing applications.
SMR Jan-2026 Release 1 (January 2026 Samsung Security Patch)
- Check for system software updates on the Samsung device
- Navigate to Settings > Software update > Download and install
- Apply the SMR Jan-2026 Release 1 security update or later
- Verify the security patch level in Settings > About phone > Software information shows the January 2026 security patch
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 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 $3,088.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-20969 — 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-2026-20969 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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- 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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