Samsung patches zero-day security flaw used to hack into its customers' phones | TechCrunch

"The phone maker said the security flaw, discovered in a software library for displaying images on Samsung devices, allows hackers to remotely plant malicious code on Samsung devices running Android 13 through the most recent version, Android 16. Samsung's advisory said security teams from Meta and WhatsApp privately notified the company on August 13 and was told that "an exploit for this issue has existed in the wild.""

"Samsung did not provide a list of devices affected by the vulnerability. The bug is known as a zero-day because the vendor, in this case Samsung, was given no time to fix the bug before it was exploited. It's not immediately clear who is behind the hacking campaign or how many Samsung customers are affected, and a spokesperson for Samsung did not respond to a request for comment sent prior to publication."

"WhatsApp told TechCrunch at the time that the messaging app maker sent fewer than 200 notifications to affected users whose phones were targeted or compromised by the campaign. For its part, Apple has not commented on the vulnerabilities it patched, except to say that the flaw was used in an "extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals." Apple periodically notifies new victims of potential spyware attacks, and asks them to seek help from Access Now's digital security lab. The tech giant most recently on September 3 notified an unspecified number of its customers that their phones were targeted as part of a spyware campaign, according"

Samsung fixed a zero-day vulnerability in a software library that displays images, allowing remote installation of malicious code on devices running Android 13 through Android 16. Meta and WhatsApp privately notified Samsung on August 13 and warned that an exploit had been observed in the wild. Samsung did not list affected devices and provided no immediate comment; attribution and the scale of customer impact remain unclear. The fixes coincide with security updates from Apple and WhatsApp addressing a broader spyware campaign. WhatsApp reported fewer than 200 notifications to affected users; Apple characterized its flaw as used in an "extremely sophisticated attack."

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