Samsung’s January 2021 security patch fixed a serious error in fingerprint scanner of Galaxy Note 20 devices

Samsung has started rolling out January 2021’s security patch from the One UI 3.0 beta testers of Galaxy M31 in India. Later, the patch reached different Galaxy devices such as Galaxy S9, Galaxy S20, Galaxy Note 20, and more.

Yesterday, Samsung published the security bulletin of the January 2021 security patch which fixes 1 critical and 47 high levels of CVEs for numerous Samsung devices. The company has also revised the list of devices that are eligible for monthly/quarterly/other regular security updates.

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By looking at the details in detail, we found that the January 2021 security patch fixes a major issue which is related to the in-screen fingerprint scanner of Samsung Galaxy Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra.

According to the official information, the disclosed CVE found on Galaxy Note 20 devices affects the behavior of fingerprint recognition when the device has an additional screen protector on the screen.

The January 2021 security patch brings proper image compensation to avoid inversion for fingerprint enrollment with a screen protector. This CVE named SVE-2020-19216 which is a moderate level threat and it is first reported in October 2020.

SVE-2020-19216: False recognition of fingerprint scanner

• Severity: Moderate
• Affected versions: Q(10.0) Note 20 devices
• Reported on: October 12, 2020
• Disclosure status: Privately disclosed.