CVE-2026-48179 in Exynos 1080
Summary
by MITRE • 11/05/2026
In the Exynos modem's IMS stack, improper handling of SDP payload leads to a Denial of Service
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/05/2026
The vulnerability resides within the Session Description Protocol (SDP) parsing logic of the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) stack implemented in Samsung Exynos modems. The IMS architecture is critical for enabling voice over LTE and other multimedia services, relying heavily on SDP to negotiate session parameters such as media types, codecs, and network addresses between endpoints. When a remote attacker sends a specially crafted or malformed SDP payload during the SIP signaling phase of an IMS call setup, the modem's software fails to properly validate the structure and content of this data before processing it. This improper handling typically manifests as a failure in bounds checking, memory allocation validation, or state machine synchronization within the parsing routine. Instead of gracefully rejecting invalid input with an appropriate error response, the vulnerable component attempts to process the malformed data, leading to internal inconsistencies that crash the modem's baseband processor or force a reset of the radio interface stack.
From a technical perspective, this flaw aligns closely with CWE-20 Improper Input Validation and potentially CWE-400 Resource Exhaustion if the malformed payload triggers excessive resource consumption during parsing. The lack of rigorous sanitization allows an attacker to exploit weaknesses in how the modem interprets variable-length fields or nested structures within the SDP message. Because this processing occurs at the baseband level, which operates independently from the main application processor, a successful exploitation does not necessarily compromise user data confidentiality but severely impacts system availability. The immediate operational impact is a Denial of Service condition where the device loses cellular connectivity, drops active calls, or becomes unresponsive to network registration attempts until the modem subsystem is restarted by the operating system or power-cycled.
This vulnerability poses significant risks in scenarios involving unsolicited signaling messages or malicious SIP INVITE requests directed at vulnerable devices over public networks. Attackers with knowledge of this flaw can conduct remote denial-of-service attacks without requiring authentication, effectively disabling voice and data services for targeted users. In enterprise environments relying on VoLTE for critical communications, such instability could disrupt business operations. Furthermore, repeated exploitation attempts might lead to increased battery consumption due to constant modem resets or re-registration cycles, degrading the user experience over time.
Mitigation strategies primarily involve applying vendor-provided firmware updates that patch the SDP parsing logic with stricter input validation and error handling routines. Network operators can also implement signaling firewalls at the network edge to inspect SIP traffic for anomalous patterns or malformed payloads before they reach end-user devices, thereby providing a layer of defense-in-depth. Until patches are deployed, users should be advised to remain vigilant regarding unexpected call drops or connectivity issues that may indicate ongoing exploitation attempts in their vicinity.