| Samsung Galaxy A33 5G (SM-A336B)
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Security Grade
Calculator v1
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Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
Category: Smartphone • Model / Gen: Galaxy A series (2022) SM-A336B (SM-A336B/DSN dual-SIM variant)
Release Date: 2022-04-22 • Status:
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Security Evaluation
1. Device Security
| Criterion
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Value
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Proof
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Comment
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| Known hardware tampering
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Rare
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🔗 Proof
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ChoiceJacking physically connects a malicious charger to the exposed USB port. The study tested Galaxy A33 on Android 14 / One UI 6 and bypassed USB consent prompts. This meets the methodology's port-access scope. Rare is a provisional qualitative classification, not measured prevalence; the tested regional SKU is unspecified.
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| Known vulnerabilities
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Rare
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🔗 Proof
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The study documents a model-tested USB consent vulnerability family, rather than an absence of vulnerabilities. Its disclosure section associates Samsung findings with CVE-2024-20900. Rare describes the limited model-specific evidence reviewed; it is not a claim that vulnerabilities are infrequent or that every current firmware remains affected.
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| Prior attacks
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Rare
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🔗 Proof
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Researchers actually demonstrated ChoiceJacking on Galaxy A33: file access required an unlocked device, and ADB access additionally required USB debugging. This is a laboratory attack, not evidence of criminal campaigns or botnet participation. Current Android 16 exploitability and SM-A336B-specific reproduction are unverified.
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| Updatability
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Very common
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🔗 Proof
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Samsung's SM-A336B changelog records repeated security releases through 2026, including an October 7 release carrying the August 5 patch level. The current security scope lists A33 5G for quarterly updates. This supports regular update availability, not monthly delivery, indefinite support, or confirmation that a particular handset installed them.
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| Category Score
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Score: 2 / 3
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2. System Security
| Criterion
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Value
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Proof
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Comment
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| Authentication with other systems
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Partial
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🔗 Proof
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The model's Android 16 manual documents Bluetooth pairing accepted on both devices and passwords for secured Wi-Fi networks (pp. 95-98). Open networks are also supported. Partial reflects these documented controls; universal mutual authentication across apps and interfaces has not been established.
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| Communications
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No encryption
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🔗 Proof
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Android supports secure connections and blocks cleartext by default for apps targeting API 28+, but permits applications to explicitly allow HTTP. Because the rubric has no mixed-traffic option, No encryption provisionally represents the possibility of plaintext traffic, not a claim that all communications are unencrypted. No packet capture was performed.
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| Storage
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Encrypted with up-to-date encryption
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🔗 Proof
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Samsung documents default file-based encryption for Knox device data, with credential-encrypted and device-encrypted storage. A33 is advertised as a Knox device and launched on Android 12, which requires FBE. This supports modern encryption of internal user data. The exact handset cipher configuration was not measured; removable microSD and every firmware partition are outside this claim.
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| Category Score
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Score: 2 / 3
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3. User Authentication
| Criterion
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Value
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Proof
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Comment
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| Account management
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Basic
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🔗 Proof
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The manual documents adding Samsung/Google accounts, password recovery and Samsung-account sign-out (pp. 27-28, 126). These establish basic account controls. Creation of arbitrary lower-privilege local users is unverified, so Full is not justified; this uncertainty does not mean such functionality is absent in every managed configuration.
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| Authentication
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Secure
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🔗 Proof
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Samsung documents credential checks for a Settings reset and ownership verification after other resets when Google device protection is configured. Its Knox documentation also describes signed boot-chain verification. Secure applies to a stock, locked device with accounts and screen lock configured; it is not a claim of unconditional recovery security or resistance to every bypass.
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| Brute-force protection
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Exist
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🔗 Proof
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The model manual provides an optional automatic factory reset after reaching the failed-unlock limit (p. 34). Samsung's platform documentation also describes credential rate-limiting. Protection therefore exists, but the optional wipe is not assumed enabled, and the precise retry schedule was not measured on this handset.
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| Event logging
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Partial logging
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🔗 Proof
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The manual documents permission-use history for the preceding 24 hours and recent location access (pp. 114, 124). These support partial access-event visibility. A comprehensive persistent audit of every login and file access is unverified; enterprise audit-log collection is not assumed configured.
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| Passwords
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Default/Common/Easy to guess
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🔗 Proof
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Samsung permits Swipe/None, patterns and PINs as short as four digits. The category represents permitted weak/no-lock choices rather than a universal shared factory password. A mandatory post-setup credential change with enforced complexity is not established for the consumer configuration; stronger passwords and managed policies remain available.
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| Category Score
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Score: 2 / 3
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Technical Specifications
| Property
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Details
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| Operating System & App
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Android 12 / One UI 4.1 at launch; Android 16 documented for SM-A336B (Companion App: )
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| Hardware (CPU / GPU)
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CPU: Octa-core, 2.4 GHz and 2.0 GHz • GPU:
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| Memory & Storage
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Memory: 6 / 8 GB RAM (market-dependent variants) • Storage: 128 / 256 GB internal; microSD up to 1 TB (market-dependent variants)
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| Power, Battery & Charging
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Battery: 5000 mAh typical; 4860 mAh rated minimum • Power: Rechargeable battery; USB-C charging • Charging: Up to 25 W Super Fast Charging
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| Display & Camera
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Display: 6.4-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED, 90 Hz Infinity-U • Camera: Rear: 48 MP main with OIS, 8 MP ultrawide, 5 MP macro, 2 MP depth; front: 13 MP
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| Sound & Connectivity
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Sound: • Connectivity: 5G, LTE, dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 5.1; USB-C
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| Physical (Dimensions & Mass)
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Dimensions: 159.7 x 74.0 x 8.1 mm • Mass: 186 g
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Assessment scope and uncertainty
Assessment date: 2026-10-23. Literature-based assessment of Samsung Galaxy A33 5G, SM-A336B family (official support/manual model SM-A336B/DSN). No physical handset, packet capture or firmware extraction was used.
Current feature descriptions use Samsung's model-listed Android 16 manual. Historical attack evidence concerns Android 14 / One UI 6 and an unspecified regional SKU. These findings must not be presented as confirmed vulnerabilities of the latest SM-A336B firmware. Laboratory demonstrations are distinguished from criminal exploitation; botnet involvement is unverified.
The Methodology has no Unknown option or numeric threshold for Rare/Very common. Frequency ratings are qualitative and provisional, not prevalence estimates. Missing evidence is not treated as absence. The communications field has no mixed-traffic option; its selected label means plaintext can be allowed by apps, not that modern encrypted communication is unavailable.
Basic account management is evidenced; arbitrary lower-privilege local users remain unverified. Storage and signed-boot conclusions combine the model's advertised Knox support with Samsung platform documentation. No A33-specific Common Criteria certification, Knox Vault hardware, DualDAR, enterprise audit collection or default enterprise policy enforcement is claimed. Optional failed-attempt wiping must be enabled by the user.
The release date records the manufacturer's announced April 22, 2022 availability in select markets, not the March 17 announcement date or every regional first sale. RAM/storage options vary by market. Sale status, GPU, exact CPU chipset branding, sound specifications and companion-app applicability were not independently established here and are left unspecified.
Duplicate checks: Wiki-IoT searches for A33 and A336 returned no matching records before creating this draft.
Additional references
Score calculation
- Device: ceil((2 + 2 + 2 + 1)/4) = 2.
- System: ceil((2 + 3 + 1)/3) = 2.
- User authentication: ceil((2 + 1 + 1 + 2 + 3)/5) = 2.
- Total: 6, corresponding to B under the current Methodology. This is a device security classification, not an assignment mark.
