Samsung has released security updates to patch a critical zero-day vulnerability actively exploited against Android devices. Tracked as CVE-2025-21043 with a CVSS score of 8.8, the flaw enables remote code execution (RCE) when processing malicious images.
According to Samsung’s advisory, “Out-of-bounds Write in libimagecodec.quram.so prior to SMR Sep-2025 Release 1 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code. The patch fixed the incorrect implementation.” The company confirmed that an exploit was already circulating, stating, “Samsung was notified that an exploit for this issue has existed in the wild.”
While Samsung has not disclosed technical details of the active campaigns, security experts note that the vulnerability is triggered through maliciously crafted images processed by the vulnerable library.
Although Samsung did not explicitly confirm which applications were abused in the wild, it acknowledged that the flaw may extend beyond a single service. The attacks, which leveraged a vulnerability in an image parsing library (CVE-2025-21043), may have also targeted other instant messaging apps besides WhatsApp that use the same library. Although Samsung didn’t specify if the attacks were limited to Samsung Android devices, the vulnerability’s impact could extend to any device running an app that uses the affected software. This suggests that any messenger or application relying on libimagecodec.quram.so could be a potential vector.
The zero-day patch from Samsung follows Google’s recent announcement of two Android vulnerabilities—CVE-2025-38352 and CVE-2025-48543—exploited in targeted attacks. The back-to-back disclosures highlight a troubling rise in mobile zero-day exploitation, where attackers selectively target high-value individuals through carefully crafted exploits.
Users are recommended to update immediately to the September 2025 Samsung Mobile Security Release 1 (SMR Sep-2025).
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