CVE-2025-23097: Samsung Mobile Processor Exynos 1380 Out-of-Bounds Write Vulnerability

Overview

The realm of cybersecurity is no stranger to vulnerabilities and exploits. The CVE-2025-23097 is one such vulnerability that puts the security of Samsung Mobile Processor Exynos 1380 at significant risk. This security flaw is caused by the absence of a length check, leading to potential out-of-bounds writes, which can be exploited by attackers for system compromise and data leakage.
Why does it matter? Millions of Samsung devices are equipped with this processor, making them potential targets. This vulnerability’s severity, with a CVSS score of 9.1, underscores the critical need for immediate attention and mitigation.

Vulnerability Summary

CVE ID: CVE-2025-23097
Severity: Critical (9.1)
Attack Vector: Network
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Impact: Potential system compromise or data leakage

Affected Products

Product | Affected Versions

Samsung Mobile Processor Exynos 1380 | All Versions

How the Exploit Works

The vulnerability stems from a lack of length check in the Samsung Mobile Processor Exynos 1380. This absence of check can lead to an out-of-bounds write, a condition where an attacker can write data outside the intended boundary of a fixed-length buffer. This can be exploited to overwrite critical data, manipulate application control flow, or even inject malicious code, leading to a potential system compromise or data leakage.

Conceptual Example Code

Below is a conceptual example demonstrating how an attacker might exploit this vulnerability. Note that this is a hypothetical example and does not represent actual exploit code.

#include <string.h>
void vulnerable_function(char *input) {
char buffer[512];
strcpy(buffer, input); // No length check, potential out-of-bounds write
}
int main(int argc, char **argv) {
vulnerable_function(argv[1]);
return 0;
}

In this example, an attacker could provide a string longer than 512 characters as input, causing an out-of-bounds write in the `buffer` array.

Mitigation Guidance

To mitigate this vulnerability, Samsung has released a vendor patch. It is highly recommended for users to apply this patch immediately. If immediate patching is not possible, the use of a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) can serve as temporary mitigation. However, these measures cannot completely eliminate the risk and are not substitutes for proper patching.