Hackers can use rogue applications to disable passcodes and other device locks on the Android (Jellybean) mobile operating system, according to a warning issued by security research outfit Curesec.
The issue, described as a permission bypass design error, effectively means that rogue Android apps can be used to disable all the security locks and leave the device vulnerable to further attacks.
Android devices can be locked and unlocked with various mechanisms — pin codes, passwords, gestures or face recognition — but because of the security vulnerability, Curesec found that code can be embedded into malicious apps to control the lock/unlock mechanism.
The company released proof-of-concept code to demonstrate the vulnerability.
From the advisory:
The bug exists on the “com.android.settings.ChooseLockGeneric class”. This class is used to allow the user to modify the type of lock mechanism the device should have. Android implements several locks, like pin, password, gesture and even face recognition to lock and unlock a device. Before a user can change these settings, the device asks the user for confirmation of the previous lock (e.x. If a user wants to change the pin or remove it it has to first enter the previous pin).
Curesec said it reported the issue to Google’s Android security team in November but noted that it currently remains unpatched.
Ryan Naraine is Editor-at-Large at SecurityWeek and host of the popular Security Conversations podcast series. He is a security community engagement expert who has built programs at major global brands, including Intel Corp., Bishop Fox and GReAT. Ryan is a founding-director of the Security Tinkerers non-profit, an advisor to early-stage entrepreneurs, and a regular speaker at security conferences around the world.
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