Pwn2Own 2023 took place recently in Toronto, Canada. During this event, hackers successfully exploited zero-day vulnerabilities (i.e., unknown and unpatched vulnerabilities) to gain complete control of a device. Security researchers participating in the competition cracked Samsung’s latest flagship smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy S23, twice on the first day.
Furthermore, in addition to the Samsung Galaxy S23, Xiaomi 13 Pro, and numerous IoT devices, including printers, cameras, smart speakers, and NAS from companies like Canon, Lexmark, and Sonos, also succumbed to attacks on the first day of Pwn2Own. In total, researchers received more than $400,000 in awards for demonstrating 23 different zero-day vulnerabilities.
Organized by Trend Micro’s Zero-Day Initiative, the Pwn2Own 2023 competition assesses hackers from around the world in their ability to discover and exploit undisclosed vulnerabilities in popular high-tech devices. All devices run the latest operating system version and have all security updates installed.
Pentest Limited first cracked the Samsung Galaxy S23 by exploiting an input validation flaw to achieve arbitrary code execution and gain complete control over the device, earning a $50,000 prize. Shortly thereafter, the STAR Labs SG team leveraged a similar vulnerability to compromise the same model of smartphone, winning a $25,000 prize.
In this round of Pwn2Own, the total prize pool will exceed $1 million, including cash and other bonuses. Those who successfully breach the security of the Apple iPhone 14 and Google Pixel 7 reserve the highest prize, up to $300,000. You can find full details of the competition at this official link.
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