CVE-2004-0616 in Voyager 2000 Wireless Adsl Router
Summary
by MITRE
The BT Voyager 2000 Wireless ADSL Router has a default public SNMP community name, which allows remote attackers to obtain sensitive information such as the password, which is stored in plaintext.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/12/2025
The BT Voyager 2000 Wireless ADSL Router represents a significant security vulnerability through its use of default public SNMP community names that expose critical system information to unauthorized remote actors. This vulnerability stems from the router's configuration where the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) is enabled with a well-known default community string that remains unchanged in many deployments. The flaw allows attackers to perform remote reconnaissance and potentially gain access to administrative credentials stored within the device's configuration.
This technical weakness falls under the category of improper default configurations and weak authentication mechanisms, specifically aligning with CWE-798 which addresses the use of hard-coded credentials, and CWE-312 which covers the exposure of sensitive information. The vulnerability enables attackers to extract plaintext passwords and other sensitive configuration data through SNMP queries, providing them with comprehensive information about the network infrastructure and potentially allowing further exploitation of the system. The default SNMP community name serves as a backdoor that bypasses normal authentication procedures, making the device particularly susceptible to automated scanning and exploitation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure to encompass potential network compromise and unauthorized access to connected systems. Attackers can leverage this weakness to gain administrative control over the router, enabling them to modify network settings, implement man-in-the-middle attacks, or redirect traffic through malicious endpoints. The exposure of plaintext passwords within the SNMP responses creates a direct path for privilege escalation and persistent access to the network infrastructure. This vulnerability particularly affects small businesses and home users who may not regularly update their router firmware or change default configurations, leaving them exposed to automated attacks that target known default credentials.
Mitigation strategies should include immediate configuration changes to disable SNMP if not required, or at minimum to change the default community string to a strong, randomly generated value. Network administrators should implement regular security audits to identify devices with default configurations and ensure that all network equipment is properly secured. The use of network segmentation and access control lists can help limit the impact of such vulnerabilities by restricting access to critical network infrastructure. Additionally, organizations should follow security best practices such as those outlined in the NIST Cybersecurity Framework and implement proper network monitoring to detect unauthorized SNMP access attempts. The vulnerability highlights the importance of adhering to the principle of least privilege and ensuring that all network devices are configured with security in mind rather than convenience.