Galaxy SIII of Samsung : new security bug on lock screen

A security vulnerability in the Galaxy SIII has been detected on the lock screen. It allows you to override any password, PIN or pattern. Therefore we get access to all user data, making void any protection.

The method described here by Sean McMillan is relatively simple, but does not work in all cases ... because it takes a bit of skill and speed. It is necessary that the Galaxy SIII is Android 4.1.2 (Jelly Bean) as our colleagues from Engadget example tried with a previous version of mobile operating system from Google (Android 4.0.4), and it not working. They also tried to exploit this vulnerability on a Galaxy Note II (Android 4.1.2), without success.

This method is relatively simple and requires only four consecutive actions as follows : 

• You press the emergency call screen bottom  
• You then press emergency contacts at the bottom left
• You press the home button physical
• Very quickly, you then press the Power button on the right   

If you have passed the previous steps, when you turn on your smartphone, you have direct access to the home page, without having to enter your password or any other security you have in place on your Galaxy SIII.

We have repeatedly tried this method and we arrived to reproduce only once .... despite our testing about thirty.

Anyway, he will again have to wait until the manufacturer corrects this bug. Note that this is not the first time the Korean brand is affected by this problem. It will be recalled that as smartphones equipped with Exynos chip, as is the case for the Galaxy SIII could be attacked through a flaw in the API. The manufacturer will put a little more than two weeks to correct the problem via a firmware update. Remains to be seen what will happen this time.