Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This is a high-severity NETGEAR router misconfiguration issue. For affected D3600 and D6000 devices on firmware earlier than 1.0.0.76, an unauthenticated attacker on an adjacent network could potentially compromise confidentiality, integrity, and availability.
Executive priority
Prioritize remediation where affected routers support business sites, remote offices, or shared networks. The issue is high severity but appears constrained to adjacent-network reach, with no cited evidence of active exploitation in the provided sources.
Technical view
CVE-2018-21138 describes incorrect security configuration affecting NETGEAR D3600 and D6000 firmware before 1.0.0.76. CVSS 3.0 is 8.8 with adjacent-network attack vector, low complexity, no privileges, no user interaction, and high impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to NETGEAR D3600 and D6000 devices running firmware older than 1.0.0.76, especially where untrusted users can reach the same local or adjacent network. The sources do not establish broad internet exposure.
Exploitation context
The provided sources do not report active exploitation, and the CVE is not listed as CISA KEV. Treat exploitation status as unconfirmed rather than absent; prioritize based on device exposure and network adjacency risk.
Researcher notes
The public description is sparse: no CWE, no detailed misconfiguration mechanism, and no exploit detail are provided. Validation should stay focused on model, firmware level, and adjacency exposure rather than assuming a specific vulnerable service or attack path.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory NETGEAR D3600 and D6000 devices in managed environments.
- Upgrade affected firmware to version 1.0.0.76 or later where available.
- Review the NETGEAR advisory for device-specific upgrade guidance.
- Restrict access to management and local network surfaces from untrusted adjacent networks.
- Retire unsupported or unpatchable affected devices.
Validation and detection
- Confirm device model and firmware version from approved asset records or admin interfaces.
- Verify whether any D3600 or D6000 device runs firmware earlier than 1.0.0.76.
- Check that updated devices report firmware 1.0.0.76 or later.
- Review network segmentation around affected devices for adjacent-network exposure.
- Document any devices that cannot be updated and compensating controls applied.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CVE-2018-21138 mapping review
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Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 8.8 (3.0)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.0/AC:L/AV:A/A:H/C:H/I:H/PR:N/S:U/UI:N
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.0/AC:L/AV:A/A:H/C:H/I:H/PR:N/S:U/UI:N2.85.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.0 score
8.8HighVector: CVSS:3.0/AC:L/AV:A/A:H/C:H/I:H/PR:N/S:U/UI:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://kb.netgear.com/000060222/Security-Advisory-for-Security-Misconfiguration-on-Some-Routers-PSV-2018-0098CVE reference · x_refsource_CONFIRM
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.