Samsung has developed a new security feature called Samsung Message Guard to keep Galaxy smartphone users safe from the “zero-click” exploits that use malicious image files.
The Korean tech giant states that its new security system can detect these threats when they reach the device as a message and to stop them before they do any damage.
Zero-click attacks are highly-targeted and sophisticated attacks that exploit previously unknown flaws in software to trigger execution of malicious code without requiring any user interaction.
Usually attacks relying on zero-click exploits involve sending the target a message or file with malicious code to trigger a vulnerability on the device that gives the attacker access without the victim even opening the message or file.
Samsung Message Guard is an isolated virtual space on the smartphone that acts as a temporary hosting location for newly arrived image files in PNG, JPG/JPEG, GIF, ICO, WEBP, BMP, and WBMP formats.
The system checks the files to determine if they hide malicious code. If so, they are locked in quarantine mode and blocked from accessing or interacting with the underlying operating system.
Samsung Message Guard automatically neutralizes any potential threat hiding in image files before they have a chance to do you any harm.
The new security system is added to Samsung’s multiple existing protection layers, most notably Samsung Knox, which can offer real-time threat detection and protection against malware.
The security feature, available on Samsung Messages and Google Messages, is currently limited to the Samsung Galaxy S23 series, and has plans to expand it to other Galaxy smartphones and tablets later this year that are running on One UI 5.1 or higher.
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