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CVE-2011-4723D-Link DIR-300 Router Cleartext Storage of a Password Vulnerability

Patch nowMedium5.7Exploited, CISA due date 2022-09-29EPSS 3.1%, higher than 88% of scored CVEs

CVE-2011-4723 is a cleartext storage of sensitive data in D-Link DIR-300 Router, rated medium (5.7 on CVSS 3.1).

Why this priority: Exploited in the wild: listed in CISA's KEV catalog.

Published · Updated · NVD status: Analyzed

What it is

Sensitive data is stored unencrypted where others can read it.

How it is reached

An attacker can exploit it from the same local network segment, with an ordinary user account, and nobody has to click anything.

What an attacker gains

A successful attack can read the data it protects. In practice, this kind of flaw lets an attacker sign in with credentials the vendor shipped or stored unprotected.

Is it being exploited?

CISA added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2022-09-08: it is being exploited in the wild. EPSS estimates a 3.1% chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 88% of scored CVEs.

What to do

  1. Treat it as urgent: it is on CISA's KEV list. CISA's deadline for US federal agencies: 2022-09-29.
  2. No fixed version is listed yet. Find every place D-Link DIR-300 Router runs, watch the references for a fix, and plan a replacement if it is no longer supported.
  3. Segment the networks that can reach it.
  4. Check exposed instances for signs of compromise, not only for the version.

Description from NVD

The D-Link DIR-300 router stores cleartext passwords, which allows context-dependent attackers to obtain sensitive information via unspecified vectors.

What this means for your architecture.

A CVE names a product. Whether it matters depends on where that product sits in your systems: what reaches it, which trust boundary it guards and what it can reach once compromised. Veriom maps your components, their relationships and your trust boundaries from your code, cloud and delivery evidence, so you can see where a component like this sits. The radar itself does not look at your systems.

Components it touches

  • Network edge devices: VPNs, firewalls, routers and gateways. They sit between the internet and internal networks, so a flaw in one is often the first step into everything behind it.
  • Operating systems on servers, workstations or devices. Everything on the host inherits the flaw.
  • Credentials kept in code, configuration, images or firmware. The flaw sits between a stored secret and anyone who can read where it is kept.

Trust boundaries in play

  • Local network segment. The attacker must share a network segment with the target.
  • Between a stored secret and anyone who can read where it is kept. An attacker who crosses it can sign in with credentials the vendor shipped or stored unprotected.

Questions to answer about your own systems

  • Where does D-Link DIR-300 Router run in your systems, and at which version?
  • Which network segments can reach them?
  • What can it reach once compromised: which data stores, secrets and services?

Sources

  • CVE records and CVSS scores from the NVD CVE API. This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.
  • Exploitation status from CISA’s Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.
  • Exploit likelihood from FIRST’s Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS), refreshed daily.
  • Explanations are written by Veriom from fixed templates over each record’s data, not by a person reviewing each CVE. Descriptions are quoted from the records as published.