CVE-2021-1194 in Small Business
Summary
by MITRE • 01/14/2021
Multiple vulnerabilities in the web-based management interface of Cisco Small Business RV110W, RV130, RV130W, and RV215W Routers could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary code or cause an affected device to restart unexpectedly. The vulnerabilities are due to improper validation of user-supplied input in the web-based management interface. An attacker could exploit these vulnerabilities by sending crafted HTTP requests to an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary code as the root user on the underlying operating system or cause the device to reload, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition. To exploit these vulnerabilities, an attacker would need to have valid administrator credentials on the affected device. Cisco has not released software updates that address these vulnerabilities.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/13/2021
The CVE-2021-1194 vulnerability affects Cisco Small Business routers including RV110W, RV130, RV130W, and RV215W models, presenting a critical security risk through improper input validation in their web-based management interfaces. This vulnerability stems from inadequate sanitization of user-supplied data within the administrative web portal, creating a pathway for authenticated remote code execution attacks. The flaw represents a classic example of insufficient input validation, which falls under the CWE-20 category of "Improper Input Validation" and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1210 "Exploitation of Remote Services" as it enables remote exploitation through web interfaces. The vulnerability specifically targets the authentication bypass mechanism within the router's management interface, allowing attackers with valid administrator credentials to escalate privileges and execute arbitrary commands with root-level access to the underlying operating system.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs through the manipulation of HTTP request parameters within the web management interface, where user inputs are not properly validated or sanitized before being processed by the router's backend systems. When an attacker crafts malicious HTTP requests containing specially formatted input data, the router's web server fails to properly validate this input, leading to potential code injection or command execution. This weakness allows for privilege escalation from administrative user level to root level access, enabling attackers to execute arbitrary code with the highest possible system privileges. The exploitation process requires only valid administrator credentials, making the attack surface more accessible compared to vulnerabilities requiring initial authentication bypass. The underlying operating system architecture of these routers typically runs on embedded Linux systems, making the code execution capabilities particularly dangerous as they can manipulate system-level processes, network configurations, and potentially access sensitive data stored on the device.
The operational impact of CVE-2021-1194 extends beyond simple code execution to include potential denial of service conditions through device restarts, creating cascading effects in network infrastructure. When exploited successfully, attackers can cause the affected routers to reload unexpectedly, disrupting network connectivity and potentially affecting business operations. This dual capability of remote code execution and denial of service makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous for small business environments where network uptime is critical. The vulnerability affects not only individual devices but also entire network segments that rely on these routers for connectivity and security policies. The lack of available software updates from Cisco for this specific vulnerability means that affected organizations cannot remediate through standard patching procedures, leaving them exposed to potential exploitation. Network administrators may need to implement alternative security controls such as network segmentation, access control lists, or disabling the web management interface entirely to mitigate the risk while waiting for vendor solutions.
Organizations with affected Cisco routers should immediately implement network-level controls to restrict access to the web management interfaces, limiting access to trusted IP addresses and implementing multi-factor authentication where possible. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of securing administrative interfaces and implementing least privilege principles even for authenticated access. Security teams should monitor network traffic for suspicious HTTP request patterns and consider implementing intrusion detection systems to identify potential exploitation attempts. Given the absence of vendor patches, organizations should consider alternative network topologies or replacement devices until remediation becomes available. The vulnerability also highlights the need for regular security assessments of network infrastructure components and proper vulnerability management processes to identify and address similar issues before they can be exploited by malicious actors. This case represents a significant gap in the security posture of enterprise network devices and underscores the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date security measures for all network infrastructure components.