Galaxy S23 Gets Samsung Message Guard To Protect Against Zero-Click Hacks

Modern cyber attacks come in many forms — from phishing scams and ransomware attacks — to zero-day exploits and advanced persistent threats. While every kind of cyber attack could have potentially deadly consequences, there has been a gradual rise in the number of a particularly worrisome form of cyber attack called zero-click hacks. 

While most common hacks require some form of user action (like clicking on a link or opening an attachment), zero-click hacks could potentially compromise a device without any action by the user.

While less common compared to other types of attacks, zero-click hacks are increasingly becoming more prevalent, as per the Thales Consumer Digital Trust Index. These attacks have typically targeted high-value targets like governments, large corporations, and high-profile individuals. However, there is a persistent threat of zero-click hacks affecting the average Joe as attackers become more sophisticated with their methods.

Hackers typically execute zero-click hacks by exploiting unpatched vulnerabilities within a device's messaging app, Bluetooth, or Wi-Fi protocols. For example, an attacker could send a specially crafted message to the device to exploit a vulnerability, allowing them to remotely execute code on the device and eventually take control of it.

Even as smartphone brands continue to engage in a constant battle to patch vulnerabilities on their devices and to remain one step ahead of these attackers, Samsung is rolling out a new security solution that could significantly reduce the possibility of a data breach induced by a zero-click hack. The new solution, called Samsung Message Guard, specifically targets zero-click hacks proliferating via a device's messaging app.

In a press note announcing Samsung Message Guard, the company describes the solution as an advanced "sandbox" and a "virtual quarantine." The primary objective of Message Guard is to isolate messages delivered to the smartphone before it can access the device's files and operating system. Every time a text message is delivered to a Samsung smartphone protected by Message Guard, the tool checks the file bit by bit. This process happens in a controlled environment in such a way that it cannot infect the rest of the smartphone.

Samsung claims that the Message Guard tool preemptively neutralizes any threat hidden in text messages and image files before they could harm the device. What makes the tool even more effective is that it does not need to be enabled separately by the user, and runs invisibly in the background without needing any user interaction. 

In its current form, the tool works with Samsung's own Messaging app as well as Google Messages. However, Samsung has promised a software update that will also widen the protection net to third-party messaging apps.

Samsung Message Guard is currently enabled by default on the company's newest Galaxy S23 smartphones. However, the solution will roll out to a broader lineup of Galaxy smartphones and tablets later this year, the company confirmed.