# CVE-2021-22494: Security feature bypass in n/a

> A screen protector can cause fingerprint enrollment inversion, leading to high false recognition rates and potential bypass of biometric authentication on Samsung Note20 devices.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 5 Jan 2021
- **Updated:** 3 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-cff3-jr7v-m727

## What is CVE-2021-22494?

CVE-2021-22494 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Google Android, published on 5 Jan 2021. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

An issue was discovered in the fingerprint scanner on Samsung Note20 mobile devices with Q(10.0) software. When a screen protector is used, the required image compensation is not present. Consequently, inversion can occur during fingerprint enrollment, and a high False Recognition Rate (FRR) can occur. The Samsung ID is SVE-2020-19216 (January 2021).

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-22494?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Google Android.

## How do I fix CVE-2021-22494?

No fix has been published for CVE-2021-22494 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2021-22494 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-22494 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Google Android

- [CVE-2026-58704](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-58704/): Google Pixel Improper Authorization (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-48543](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-48543/): Android Runtime Use-After-Free (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2023-35674](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-35674/): Android Framework Privilege Escalation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-48595](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-48595/): Android Framework Integer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2024-32896](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-32896/): Android Pixel Privilege Escalation (high 8.1, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2021-22494 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2021-22494 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Google Android, published on 5 Jan 2021. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-22494 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Google Android. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-22494/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-22494/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-22494
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-22494
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-22494

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-22494/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.