CVE-2004-0328 in Gn-B46B 2.4Ghz Wireless Broadband Router
Summary
by MITRE
Gigabyte Gn-B46B 2.4Ghz wireless broadband router firmware 1.003.00 allows local users on the same local network as the router to bypass authentication by using a copy of the router s html menu on a separate system.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/08/2017
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2004-0328 affects the Gigabyte Gn-B46B 2.4GHz wireless broadband router running firmware version 1.003.00. This represents a significant security flaw in the router's authentication mechanism that allows unauthorized local network users to gain administrative access to the device. The issue stems from the router's failure to properly validate session tokens or authentication credentials when accessing the web-based management interface, creating a path for privilege escalation through session replay attacks.
The technical flaw manifests as a lack of proper session management and authentication state validation within the router's web interface implementation. When a legitimate user accesses the router's administrative menu, the system should maintain strict session control and validate each request to ensure the user remains authenticated. However, this vulnerability allows local attackers to simply copy the HTML menu interface from one system to another and use it to access the router's administrative functions without proper authentication. This type of vulnerability falls under the CWE-613 weakness category, which specifically addresses insufficient session expiration or invalidation, and represents a classic case of weak authentication mechanisms that fail to properly verify user identity.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is substantial for organizations and individuals using the affected router model. Local network users who gain access to the administrative interface can modify critical router settings including firewall rules, port forwarding configurations, DNS settings, and wireless security parameters. This provides attackers with the ability to redirect traffic, disable security features, create backdoors, or completely compromise the network's perimeter defense. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it requires no external network access or sophisticated exploitation techniques - simply being on the same local network provides sufficient access to exploit the flaw. This aligns with ATT&CK technique T1072 which involves using legitimate credentials or interfaces to gain access to systems, and T1566 which covers social engineering attacks that leverage local network access to compromise systems.
The security implications extend beyond simple unauthorized access as this vulnerability enables attackers to potentially establish persistent access to the network through configuration changes that could include setting up malicious DNS servers or creating unauthorized network connections. Network administrators may be unaware of the compromise until they notice unusual network behavior or security incidents, as the attack does not generate obvious network traffic patterns. The vulnerability also demonstrates poor security design principles in embedded systems, where the assumption that local network users are trusted leads to inadequate authentication controls. Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including firmware updates if available, network segmentation to isolate critical devices, and regular monitoring of router configurations for unauthorized changes. Additionally, network administrators should consider disabling unnecessary web management interfaces and implementing stronger authentication mechanisms such as multi-factor authentication or requiring specific network access controls for administrative access to network devices.