Unisoc processors DANGEROUS! Makes Motorola Moto G20 easy-to-hack | Mobile News

Unisoc processors DANGEROUS! Makes Motorola Moto G20 easy-to-hack

Unisoc processors are deemed vulnerable to hack, say latest research. Here is what you need to know.

By: HT TECH
| Updated on: Aug 22 2022, 12:57 IST
Phones using Unisoc processoes are at risk of getting hacked. (Image: Micromax IN 2c with Unisoc T610)
Phones using Unisoc processoes are at risk of getting hacked. (Image: Micromax IN 2c with Unisoc T610) (Ht Tech/ Himani Jha)
Phones using Unisoc processoes are at risk of getting hacked. (Image: Micromax IN 2c with Unisoc T610)
Phones using Unisoc processoes are at risk of getting hacked. (Image: Micromax IN 2c with Unisoc T610) (Ht Tech/ Himani Jha)

Unisoc processors have been found to be dangerous! A new research finds smartphones using the Unisoc processors easy to hack. The vulnerability was found on a Unisoc T700 chipset inside a Motorola Moto G20. The vulnerability, however, was found on most other Unisoc processors and hence, puts several smartphones across the world at risk. For those in the unknown, a lot of smartphone manufacturers use Unisoc processors for their affordable smartphones.

The study published by CheckPoint Research suggest that Unisoc processor are more vulnerable to hacking due a to security flaw in their modem firmware, which is labeled as CVE-2022-20210. The flaw is present on the model firmware on both 4G and 5G chipsets. On the Motorola device that was tested, the phone was given a patch with the January 2022 Android security patch, which eventually solved the issue. However, for all other phones using other Unisoc processors, the issue still exists.

ALSO READ: Realme C21Y with Unisoc SoC launched in India; check price, specs and more

Unisoc processors prone to hacking

The flaw was discovered while the researchers were scanning Non-Access Startum message handles in the chip's modem firmware. The flaw can allow the hackers to exploit the cellular communications, making it neutral or completely defunct. “An attacker could have used a radio station to send a malformed packet that would reset the modem, depriving the user of the possibility of communication. Left unpatched, cellular communication can be blocked by an attacker,” said Salva Makkaveev, reverse engineering and security research attorney at Check Point Research.

Unisoc hasn't had any reports of this flaw getting exploited. However, the problem still is at large, considering that most Unisoc processors are used in budget smartphones that seldom or never get software updates. In fact, most Chinese smartphone makers use Unisoc chipsets to keep the prices low without sacrificing much on performance, and then never release software updates to them.

Check Point informed Unisoc about the issue and so far, Unisoc has acknowledged and even issued a security patch for the same. However, the patch is yet to reach most users.

“There is nothing for Android users to do right now, though we strongly recommend applying a patch that will be released by Google in their upcoming Android Security Bulletin,” said Salva Makkaveev.

Hence, if you are using a smartphone with a Unisoc chipset, you should install the latest security updates as soon as possible.

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First Published Date: 04 Jun, 18:12 IST
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