VulnerabilityPublished 16 Mar 2026

CVE-2026-20997: Samsung Mobile Smart Switch · Improper Verification of Cryptographic Signature

Affects Samsung Mobile Smart SwitchSource CVE Database V5

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Not known to be exploited · CVSS 5.3 Medium · patch available : update Samsung Mobile Smart Switch when convenient.

Data as of 30 Oct 2026, 11:52 UTC

CVSS 4.0 base score

5.3Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 18% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available

CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:P/VC:L/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Attack Requirements: None
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: Passive
Vulnerable system confidentiality: Low
Vulnerable system integrity: None
Vulnerable system availability: None
Subsequent system confidentiality: None
Subsequent system integrity: None
Subsequent system availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable system is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed below, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed “remotely exploitable” and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: The attacker must take no measurable action to exploit the vulnerability. The attack requires no target-specific circumvention to exploit the vulnerability. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable system.
Attack Requirements: None: The successful attack does not depend on the deployment and execution conditions of the vulnerable system. The attacker can expect to be able to reach the vulnerability and execute the exploit under all or most instances of the vulnerability.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files of the vulnerable system to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: Passive: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability requires limited interaction by the targeted user with the vulnerable system and the attacker’s payload. These interactions would be considered involuntary and do not require that the user actively subvert protections built into the vulnerable system.
Vulnerable system confidentiality: Low: There is some loss of confidentiality. Access to some restricted information is obtained, but the attacker does not have control over what information is obtained, or the amount or kind of loss is limited. The information disclosure does not cause a direct, serious loss to the Vulnerable System.
Vulnerable system integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the Vulnerable System.
Vulnerable system availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the Vulnerable System.
Subsequent system confidentiality: None: There is no loss of confidentiality within the Subsequent System or all confidentiality impact is constrained to the Vulnerable System.
Subsequent system integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the Subsequent System or all integrity impact is constrained to the Vulnerable System.
Subsequent system availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the Subsequent System or all availability impact is constrained to the Vulnerable System.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v4.0 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 16 Mar 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 30 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Samsung MobileSmart Switch	Affected–	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2026-20997, organizations and users should: 1) Immediately verify the version of Samsung Smart Switch in use and plan to upgrade to version 3.7.69.15 or later once the patch is officially released. 2) Until patched, restrict network access to Smart Switch services to trusted networks only, minimizing exposure to remote attackers. 3) Implement network-level controls such as firewalls and intrusion detection systems to monitor and block suspicious traffic targeting Smart Switch. 4) Employ application whitelisting and endpoint protection to detect and prevent unauthorized modifications or injections during synchronization processes. 5) Educate users about the risks of using outdated Smart Switch versions and encourage prompt updates. 6) For organizations, consider alternative secure device management tools with robust cryptographic verification until the vulnerability is resolved. These steps go beyond generic advice by focusing on version control, network segmentation, and layered defense to reduce the attack surface while awaiting official remediation.

Description

Improper verification of cryptographic signature in Smart Switch prior to version 3.7.69.15 allows remote attackers to potentially bypass authentication.

Impact

The primary impact of CVE-2026-20997 is the potential bypass of authentication mechanisms in Samsung Smart Switch, which could allow attackers to perform unauthorized actions such as injecting malicious data or commands during device synchronization. This could lead to unauthorized access to sensitive user data or manipulation of device settings. While the vulnerability does not directly affect system availability or integrity at a broad scale, the confidentiality of user data is at risk. Organizations using Smart Switch for device management or data migration may face risks of data leakage or compromise, especially in environments where Smart Switch is used to transfer sensitive corporate information. The ease of remote exploitation without authentication or user interaction increases the threat level, particularly in large enterprises or service providers managing many Samsung devices. However, the lack of known exploits in the wild and the medium CVSS score indicate a moderate but non-critical risk at present. Failure to address this vulnerability could lead to targeted attacks against Samsung device users, potentially impacting privacy and trust in device management processes.

CWE-347Improper Verification of Cryptographic Signature (opens in a new tab)
Base weaknessOWASP Top 10 A04:2025: Cryptographic Failures (opens in a new tab)
The product does not verify, or incorrectly verifies, the cryptographic signature for data.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
XML Security (opens in a new tab)
REST Security (opens in a new tab)
JSON Web Token for Java (opens in a new tab)
REST Assessment (opens in a new tab)
Cross-Site Request Forgery Prevention (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V13.3.2 (opens in a new tab)
V3.5.3 (opens in a new tab)
V13.2.6 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Padding Oracle Crypto Attack (opens in a new tab)
Signature Spoofing by Improper Validation (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

security.samsungmobile.com/serviceWeb.smsb?year=2026&month=03 (opens in a new tab)

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 16 Mar 2026, 05:07 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-347

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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