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Actively exploited

CVE-2017-5521 NETGEAR Multiple Devices Exposure of Sensitive Information Vulnerability

Multiple NETGEAR devices are prone to admin password disclosure via simple crafted requests to the web management server.

From the CISA KEV catalogue version 2026.11.06, with Cybergen analysis. Updated 6 Nov 2026.

Our Assessment

Should You Worry?

Patch urgentlyCybergen assessment
  • CISA confirmed exploitation in the wild and added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue on 8 Sep 2022.
  • Rated High severity (CVSS 8.1, scored by CISA).
  • It has been in the catalogue for 1,520 days. Systems still unpatched now have almost certainly been scanned for it.
The Vulnerability

What It Is

An issue was discovered on NETGEAR R8500, R8300, R7000, R6400, R7300, R7100LG, R6300v2, WNDR3400v3, WNR3500Lv2, R6250, R6700, R6900, and R8000 devices. They are prone to password disclosure via simple crafted requests to the web management server. The bug is exploitable remotely if the remote management option is set, and can also be exploited given access to the router over LAN or WLAN. When trying to access the web panel, a user is asked to authenticate; if the authentication is canceled and password recovery is not enabled, the user is redirected to a page that exposes a password recovery token. If a user supplies the correct token to the page /passwordrecovered.cgi?id=TOKEN (and password recovery is not enabled), they will receive the admin password for the router. If password recovery is set the exploit will fail, as it will ask the user for the recovery questions that were previously set when enabling that feature. This is persistent (even after disabling the recovery option, the exploit will fail) because the router will ask for the security questions.

From Watch to Action

What To Do Now

  1. 1

    Find it

    Search your asset inventory and external attack surface for NETGEAR Multiple Devices. Include cloud images, appliances and anything a supplier runs for you.

    Attack Surface Management
  2. 2

    Fix it

    Apply updates per vendor instructions. If the affected device has since entered end-of-life, it should be disconnected if still in use.

    Vulnerability Management
  3. 3

    Hunt for compromise

    If an affected system was reachable before you patched, assume it may have been hit. Check logs, new accounts, web shells and outbound connections from the date of exposure.

    Incident Response
  4. 4

    Prove it is fixed

    Rescan or test the system after patching. Upgrades that fail silently and forgotten secondary instances are common.

    Penetration Testing

Vendor Advisories

Regulation

The Compliance Clock

Cyber EssentialsRated high, so if it affects devices in your Cyber Essentials scope, the update must be installed within 14 days of the vendor releasing it.NIS2If exploitation causes a significant incident, essential and important entities owe their CSIRT an early warning within 24 hours and a notification within 72 hours.DORAFinancial entities must classify ICT incidents and send an initial notification for a major incident within strict deadlines, with exploited flaws a common cause.US federal (BOD 22-01)Federal civilian agencies had until 29 Sep 2022 to remediate. A sensible benchmark for everyone else.

General guidance, not legal advice. Your obligations depend on your sector, scope and jurisdiction.

Stay Ahead

More Exploited NETGEAR Flaws

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CVE-2017-6862NETGEAR Multiple Devices Buffer Overflow VulnerabilityAdded 8 Jun 2022CVE-2017-6334NETGEAR DGN2200 Devices OS Command Injection VulnerabilityAdded 25 Mar 2022CVE-2016-1555NETGEAR Multiple WAP Devices Command Injection VulnerabilityAdded 25 Mar 2022CVE-2016-10174NETGEAR WNR2000v5 Router Buffer Overflow VulnerabilityAdded 25 Mar 2022CVE-2017-6077NETGEAR DGN2200 Remote Code Execution VulnerabilityAdded 7 Mar 2022CVE-2016-6277NETGEAR Multiple Routers Remote Code Execution VulnerabilityAdded 7 Mar 2022

All 8 exploited NETGEAR vulnerabilities

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Evidence

Sources

  1. CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue
  2. NVD: CVE-2017-5521
  3. CVE record: CVE-2017-5521
  4. FIRST EPSS
  5. kb.netgear.com/30632/Web-GUI-Password-Recovery-and-Exposure-Security-Vulnerability
  6. exploit-db.com/exploits/41205/
  7. kb.netgear.com/30632/Web-GUI-Password-Recovery-and-Exposure-Security-Vulnerability
  8. securityfocus.com/bid/95457