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How the mentioned CVE works:
CVE-2025-48598 exploits a confused deputy vulnerability in Android’s biometric management system. The flaw exists in system services handling face unlock configuration requests. These services, with elevated privileges, fail to properly verify the calling application’s identity. A malicious app can craft specific intents or use exposed APIs to send requests. Due to inadequate authorization checks, services mistakenly attribute requests to the primary user or trusted component. This allows unauthorized modification of face unlock settings. For example, an attacker could add their facial data or disable face unlock. Exploitation requires no user interaction, enabling silent attacks. The vulnerability is triggered via inter-process communication where intent filters or Binder transactions are mishandled. By exploiting this, an attacker bypasses lock screen authentication, gaining physical device access. The core issue is lack of context validation in multiple code locations handling biometric updates. This leads to privilege escalation from a standard app to system-level security settings. The confused deputy occurs because the service does not confirm the requestor’s right to alter configurations. Unauthorized changes are applied, compromising device security. This highlights the importance of strict identity verification in privileged services.
Platform: Android
Version: Multiple versions
Vulnerability: Confused deputy attack
Severity: Critical
Date: 12/08/2025
Prediction: December 2025 patch
What Undercode Say:
Analytics:
adb shell dumpsys biometric
adb shell pm list permissions
adb logcat -b events
am broadcast -a android.intent.action.ACTION_UPDATE_BIOMETRIC
cat /data/system/locksettings.db
grep -i faceunlock /data/system/packages.xml
How Exploit:
Craft malicious Android app. Send crafted intent to biometric service. Exploit improper validation silently. Modify face unlock data. Add attacker face. Disable face unlock. Gain device access.
Protection from this CVE:
Apply security patches. Disable face unlock. Use strong authentication. Update device regularly. Install trusted apps.
Impact:
Physical privilege escalation. Unauthorized device access. Biometric authentication bypass. Data theft risk. No user interaction.
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Sources:
Reported By: nvd.nist.gov
Extra Source Hub:
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