CVE-2026-52749 in AR2140
Summary
by MITRE • 09/28/2026
The Kaon AR2140X router improperly issues session cookies in responses to unauthenticated HTTP requests. This vulnerability allows a remote attacker to obtain a valid session identifier without providing credentials, resulting in an authentication bypass. With this access, the attacker can perform unauthorized actions on upgrade-related functionalities. These actions can be abused to force the router to issue GET requests to arbitrarily chosen domains.
This issue was identified in firmware versions up to 4.2.17. Status of newer versions remains unknown.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/28/2026
The Kaon AR2140X wireless router contains a critical authentication bypass vulnerability stemming from improper session management practices within its web interface implementation. Specifically, the device issues valid HTTP session cookies in response to unauthenticated requests without requiring prior credential verification or challenge-response mechanisms. This flaw represents a fundamental failure in access control logic, allowing any remote actor with network connectivity to establish an authenticated session state without possessing legitimate administrative credentials. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-287 as Improper Authentication and aligns with MITRE ATT&CK technique T1078, which covers Valid Accounts exploitation through credential theft or bypass mechanisms. By obtaining a valid session identifier directly from the server response to unauthenticated traffic, an attacker effectively circumvents the intended authentication gatekeeping layer of the router's management interface.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe due to its potential for remote code execution and network manipulation without physical access or prior compromise of user credentials. Once an attacker possesses a valid session cookie, they can interact with upgrade-related functionalities that are typically restricted to authenticated administrators. These functions often involve downloading firmware images or configuration files from specified URLs. An adversary can exploit this capability by forcing the router to issue GET requests to domains controlled by the attacker. This mechanism allows for several malicious outcomes including the delivery of malicious payloads disguised as legitimate updates, exfiltration of sensitive data via DNS queries embedded in user-agent strings or referrer headers during HTTP requests, and potential command injection if the firmware update process parses external inputs insecurely. The ability to direct outbound traffic arbitrarily transforms a simple authentication flaw into a vector for broader network compromise and lateral movement within protected environments.
Mitigation strategies must address both immediate remediation and long-term architectural improvements. Users should immediately upgrade to firmware version 4.2.18 or later if available, as this issue was identified in versions up to 4.2.17 with the status of newer versions remaining unknown pending vendor confirmation. If upgrading is not feasible, network segmentation should be implemented to restrict access to the router's management interface exclusively from trusted internal subnets using firewall rules that block external HTTP traffic targeting administrative ports. Additionally, enabling HTTPS-only modes and disabling unnecessary services such as remote upgrade features can reduce the attack surface. Security monitoring tools should be configured to detect anomalous outbound connection patterns originating from IoT devices, particularly those involving unexpected DNS queries or HTTP requests to unknown domains which may indicate exploitation of this vulnerability for data exfiltration or command-and-control communication purposes.