Security analysts recently demonstrated a significant weakness in Samsung smartphones that could potentially impact up to 600 million people. The vulnerability lies in their modified version of the Swiftkey app, which is Samsung’s onscreen keyboard. This vulnerability impacts the the Samsung Galaxy S6 on Verizon and Sprint networks, the Galaxy S5 on T-Mobile, and the Galaxy S4 Mini on AT&T. The developers of SwiftKey were quick to confirm that the version available for download on Google Play was not affected by this vulnerability, and supposedly Samsung has provided a fix to carriers, but there is no confirmation from any of the carriers as to whether they’ve distributed this fix, or have any plans to do so.
What this means for you:
This vulnerability could potentially allow an attacker to completely “own” your device – from the camera to microphone, incoming and outgoing texts and emails, as well as installing further malicious applications. There is no way to uninstall this app unless you root your phone (only recommended for the technically savvy, and you might void your warranty), and even if you switch to a different keyboard app, the vulnerability still exists. Until the carriers can confirm that they’ve patched this vulnerability you should avoid using public wi-fi networks, and if you are feeling sufficiently outraged, you can contact your carrier and demand they issue this patch immediately.
