Physical App Pinning bypass via Recents validation failure
Published Apr 13, 2026 · Updated Apr 13, 2026
Improper exception handling in Recents on Samsung Mobile Devices before SMR Apr-2026 Release 1 allows physical attackers to bypass App Pinning. The Recents component does not validate an exceptional condition and consequently fails to preserve the pinned-app boundary; Samsung has not disclosed the triggering input or code path. Physical access to a device with App Pinning active is required, and exploitation exposes applications and data that the feature was intended to restrict.
Summary
What happened
Improper exception handling in Recents on Samsung Mobile Devices before SMR Apr-2026 Release 1 allows physical attackers to bypass App Pinning. The Recents component does not validate an exceptional condition and consequently fails to preserve the pinned-app boundary; Samsung has not disclosed the triggering input or code path. Physical access to a device with App Pinning active is required, and exploitation exposes applications and data that the feature was intended to restrict.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-21009
- Published
- Apr 13, 2026
- Updated
- Apr 13, 2026
- Vendor
- Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
- Product
- Samsung Mobile Devices
- Classifications
- CWE-754
- Attack vector
- physical
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Apr 13, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Apr 13, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
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Attacks
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Technologies
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