Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This Samsung mobile vulnerability affects older Android-based Samsung devices before the May 2021 security maintenance release. It requires local access and already-compromised radio privilege, but CISA lists it as known exploited, so unpatched devices should be treated as a real exposure, not just theoretical risk.
Executive priority
Treat this as a high-priority mobile fleet cleanup item because CISA lists it as exploited. The technical prerequisites reduce broad opportunistic risk, but unpatched Samsung devices can still matter in targeted compromise chains.
Technical view
CVE-2021-25395 is a CWE-362 race condition in Samsung's MFC charger driver. Before SMR MAY-2021 Release 1, a local attacker with compromised radio privilege could bypass a signature check. CVSS 3.1 is 6.4 with high attack complexity and high privileges required, but confidentiality, integrity, and availability impacts are high.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to Samsung Mobile Devices on Android O 8.x, P 9.0, Q 10.0, and R 11.0 before SMR MAY-2021 Release 1. Organizations with unmanaged, unsupported, or delayed-patch Samsung fleets are most likely to retain exposure.
Exploitation context
CISA KEV status supports known exploitation. The provided sources do not describe exploit tooling, affected campaigns, or exploitation volume. The vulnerability appears post-compromise or chained, because exploitation requires local access and compromised radio privilege.
Researcher notes
Evidence supports a race condition in the MFC charger driver enabling signature-check bypass under radio-privilege compromise. Public sources here do not provide low-level root cause details, proof-of-concept material, or exploit chain context, so validation should focus on device patch state and vendor advisory mapping.
Mitigation direction
- Apply Samsung SMR MAY-2021 Release 1 or later where available.
- Inventory Samsung devices running Android 8 through Android 11.
- Prioritize replacement for unsupported devices that cannot receive the Samsung fix.
- Use MDM controls to enforce minimum Android security patch levels.
- Monitor Samsung and CISA guidance for any updated remediation details.
Validation and detection
- Confirm each Samsung device model and Android version in asset inventory.
- Verify Android security patch level is May 2021 or later.
- Check MDM compliance reports for devices below the required patch level.
- Review CISA KEV tracking for remediation due-date obligations, if applicable.
- Document any exceptions for unsupported or inaccessible devices.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
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ATT&CK lookup starting points
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CWE-362: Exact CWE lookup
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Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-25395 mapping review
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Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Medium
- CVSS
- 6.4 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- Yes
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CISA KEV status
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H0.55.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
6.4MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://security.samsungmobile.com/securityUpdate.smsb?year=2021&month=5CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2021-25395CVE reference · government-resource
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Concurrent Execution using Shared Resource with Improper Synchronization ('Race Condition')
Concurrent Execution using Shared Resource with Improper Synchronization ('Race Condition') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.