Qualcomm confirmed this week that hackers exploited a zero-day bug – a vulnerability that was unknown to its creator when it was exploited. The breach was found in dozens of chipsets used in millions of Android smartphones around the world.
The San Diego company also revealed last month that a patch had been sent to OEMs, calling the attack a “limited, targeted exploit.”
The vulnerability affected 64 Qualcomm chips. These include the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC, used in flagship devices such as Samsung Galaxy S22Ultra, OnePlus 10 Pro, Sony Xperia 1IV, Oppo Find X5 Pro, Honor Magic4 Pro, Xiaomi-12and others. The list also includes Snapdragon modems and FastConnect modules, used for Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity.
A company spokesperson stated that Qualcomm has already shipped a patch, but it is up to smartphone makers to release it to their customers. Amnesty International’s Security Lab confirmed an assessment by the Google Threat Analysis Group that the problem was serious.
The extensive investigation into who is to blame and who could have exploited this vulnerability will be “available shortly,” an Amnesty spokesperson said. Research from organizations such as Google and Amnesty shows that the hacking campaign may have targeted specific individuals rather than a large group of users.