CVE-2021-40404 in RLC-410W
Summary
by MITRE • 01/28/2022
An authentication bypass vulnerability exists in the cgiserver.cgi Login functionality of reolink RLC-410W v3.0.0.136_20121102. A specially-crafted HTTP request can lead to authentication bypass. An attacker can send an HTTP request to trigger this vulnerability.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/02/2022
The CVE-2021-40404 vulnerability represents a critical authentication bypass flaw in the Reolink RLC-410W security camera firmware version 3.0.0.136_20121102. This vulnerability specifically targets the cgiserver.cgi login functionality, which serves as the primary authentication interface for accessing the device's administrative controls. The flaw allows unauthorized users to bypass the standard authentication mechanism through carefully crafted HTTP requests, effectively granting them full administrative privileges without proper credentials. This issue directly impacts the security posture of the device by undermining its fundamental access control measures, potentially exposing sensitive video feeds and device configuration settings to malicious actors.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and authentication checks within the cgiserver.cgi component. When processing HTTP requests for login functionality, the system fails to properly validate the authentication tokens or session identifiers, allowing attackers to construct malicious requests that circumvent the normal authentication flow. The vulnerability operates at the application layer and leverages weaknesses in the web server's request handling logic. According to CWE classification, this corresponds to CWE-287 which addresses improper authentication issues. The flaw likely resides in the authentication state management or token validation mechanisms within the cgi script, where the system does not adequately verify the legitimacy of authentication requests before granting access privileges.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted, affecting both the confidentiality and integrity of the connected security infrastructure. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability can gain full administrative access to the Reolink camera, enabling them to modify camera settings, view live and recorded video feeds, change user accounts, and potentially access network configurations. This compromise could lead to unauthorized surveillance, data exfiltration, and further network infiltration attempts. The vulnerability's accessibility through simple HTTP requests makes it particularly dangerous as it requires minimal technical expertise to exploit, potentially allowing even non-technical attackers to compromise the device. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to T1078 Valid Accounts and T1566 Phishing, as it allows adversaries to assume legitimate administrative identities and potentially use the compromised device as a foothold for lateral movement within the network.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2021-40404 should prioritize immediate firmware updates from Reolink to address the authentication bypass flaw. Network administrators should implement network segmentation to isolate security cameras from critical network segments, reducing the potential impact of successful exploitation. Additional protective measures include implementing network access controls to restrict communication with the camera's web interface to trusted IP addresses only, disabling unnecessary services and ports, and regularly monitoring network traffic for suspicious authentication attempts. Security professionals should also consider deploying intrusion detection systems capable of identifying malformed HTTP requests targeting the vulnerable cgiserver.cgi component. The vulnerability highlights the importance of secure coding practices and proper authentication implementation, particularly for IoT devices that often lack robust security controls. Organizations should also maintain comprehensive asset inventories to identify all affected devices and ensure timely patch deployment across their entire network infrastructure.