CVE-2020-13835 in Samsung
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered on Samsung mobile devices with O(8.x) (with TEEGRIS) software. The Gatekeeper Trustlet allows a brute-force attack on user credentials. The Samsung ID is SVE-2020-16908 (June 2020).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/22/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2020-13835 represents a critical security flaw in Samsung mobile devices running Android 8.x operating system with TEEGRIS software components. This issue specifically targets the Gatekeeper Trustlet implementation within Samsung's Trusted Execution Environment, creating a pathway for unauthorized credential access through brute-force attacks. The vulnerability was formally acknowledged by Samsung under their internal security vulnerability enumeration system as SVE-2020-16908 and was publicly disclosed in June 2020, highlighting the significant risk this flaw posed to user authentication security.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability lies within the Gatekeeper Trustlet's insufficient implementation of credential validation mechanisms. This Trustlet serves as a critical component in Samsung's biometric and password authentication system, operating within the Trusted Execution Environment to protect sensitive authentication data. The flaw manifests as inadequate protection against repeated authentication attempts, allowing malicious actors to systematically test credential combinations without triggering effective rate limiting or account lockout mechanisms. This weakness directly violates security principles established in CWE-307, which addresses improper restriction of repeated authentication attempts, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1110.003 for Brute Force: Password Guessing, where attackers exploit weak authentication controls to gain unauthorized access.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple credential theft, as it compromises the fundamental security model of Samsung's device authentication system. Attackers can leverage this weakness to systematically guess user passwords and biometric credentials, potentially gaining access to sensitive personal data, financial information, and corporate resources stored on the device. The vulnerability affects Samsung devices running Android 8.x with TEEGRIS software, which includes various smartphone models from the Galaxy S8 and Note 8 series through to later devices in the 2017-2018 product lineup. This represents a significant risk to enterprise users and individuals who rely on Samsung devices for sensitive communications and data storage, as the flaw undermines the security assurances provided by the Trusted Execution Environment.
Samsung addressed this vulnerability through software updates and modifications to the Gatekeeper Trustlet implementation, focusing on strengthening authentication rate limiting mechanisms and improving the overall resilience of the credential validation process. Security professionals should implement immediate mitigation strategies including device firmware updates, enhanced monitoring for suspicious authentication patterns, and consideration of additional authentication layers such as multi-factor authentication. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper authentication design within trusted execution environments and serves as a reminder of the security implications when implementing complex authentication systems. Organizations should conduct thorough vulnerability assessments of their mobile device management policies and ensure that all Samsung devices are updated to versions that properly address this authentication weakness. The flaw also underscores the necessity of following established security frameworks and standards such as those defined in the NIST Cybersecurity Framework and ISO/IEC 27001 for maintaining robust authentication security controls in mobile environments.