Cisco Small Business RV Series Routers Management Interface Remote Command Execution and Denial of Service Vulnerabilities

Vulnerability

The vulnerabilities reside in the web-based management interface of Cisco Small Business RV016, RV042, RV042G, RV082, RV320, and RV325 routers. They stem from improper validation of user-supplied input in the interface. An authenticated attacker with valid administrator credentials can exploit these flaws by sending crafted HTTP requests to the affected device. All firmware versions prior to the fixed releases are vulnerable [1].

Exploitation

An attacker must have valid administrator credentials for the targeted device. No additional user interaction is required. The attacker sends specially crafted HTTP requests to the web-based management interface, which triggers the input validation weakness. The advisory does not detail the exact request structure, but the attack vector is remote over the network [1].

Impact

Successful exploitation allows the attacker to execute arbitrary code with root privileges on the underlying operating system, leading to full compromise of the device. Alternatively, the attacker can cause the device to reload, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition. Both outcomes are possible depending on the specific vulnerability triggered [1].

Mitigation

Cisco has released free software updates that address these vulnerabilities. Affected users should upgrade to the fixed firmware versions indicated in the Cisco Security Advisory [1]. No workarounds are available. The vulnerabilities are not listed on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog as of the publication date.