CVE-2026-20970

Local privileged API access via missing authorization

Published Jan 9, 2026 · Updated Jan 9, 2026

Improper access control in Samsung Mobile Devices before SMR Jan-2026 Release 1 allows local users to invoke privileged SLocation APIs. SLocation exposes privileged operations without the access-control check required to reject unauthorized local callers; Samsung has not disclosed the specific API entry points. A low-privileged local context on Android 15 or 16 is required, and the published impact is access to SLocation capabilities rather than arbitrary code execution.

CVSS severity6.8
Medium
EPSS probability0.14%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Improper access control in Samsung Mobile Devices before SMR Jan-2026 Release 1 allows local users to invoke privileged SLocation APIs. SLocation exposes privileged operations without the access-control check required to reject unauthorized local callers; Samsung has not disclosed the specific API entry points. A low-privileged local context on Android 15 or 16 is required, and the published impact is access to SLocation capabilities rather than arbitrary code execution.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-20970
Published
Jan 9, 2026
Updated
Jan 9, 2026
Vendor
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Product
Samsung Mobile Devices
Classifications
CWE-284, T1068
Attack vector
local
Privileges
Unavailable

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jan 9, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Jan 9, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Affected versions are unavailable in this record. Check the vendor advisory for version and patch details.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesUnavailable in this record.

What is affected?

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. · Samsung Mobile DevicesAffected versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

6.8Samsung MobileCVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
7.8NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
PrivilegesUnavailable
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-284Improper Access Control
T1068Exploitation for Privilege Escalation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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