CVE-2017-18838
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedCertain NETGEAR devices are affected by privilege escalation. This affects M4300-28G before 12.0.2.15, M4300-52G before 12.0.2.15, M4300-28G-POE+ before 12.0.2.15, M4300-52G-POE+ before 12.0.2.15, M4300-8X8F before 12.0.2.15, M4300-12X12F before 12.0.2.15, M4300-24X24F before 12.0.2.15, M4300-24X before 12.0.2.15, M4300-48X before 12.0.2.15, and M4200 before 12.0.2.15.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceThis is a privilege escalation vulnerability in NETGEAR M4300 and M4200 managed switches. The flaw allows an authenticated attacker to elevate their privileges beyond what their account should permit, potentially gaining administrative access to the device.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data< 12.0.2.15< 12.0.2.15< 12.0.2.15< 12.0.2.15< 12.0.2.15< 12.0.2.15< 12.0.2.15< 12.0.2.15CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify switch modelAccess the switch web interface or CLI and determine if the device is a NETGEAR M4300 or M4200 managed switch. In the web UI, this is typically visible on the dashboard or in Administration > Device Information. Via CLI, use 'show system' or similar command.Affected if Device is a NETGEAR M4300 or M4200 model
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Check firmware versionIn the web interface, go to Administration > Firmware Upgrade or Administration > Device Information to view the current firmware version. Via CLI, use 'show version' or 'show firmware' command.Affected if Firmware version is below 12.0.2.15
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Confirm vulnerability preconditionVerify that user authentication is enabled on the device. Check if multiple user accounts with different privilege levels exist. This vulnerability requires an authenticated user account to exploit the privilege escalation.Affected if Multiple user accounts exist and the device accepts authenticated sessions
You are affected if your switch is a NETGEAR M4300 (any variant listed) or M4200 running firmware version earlier than 12.0.2.15, and the device has user authentication enabled.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor data12.0.2.15
Update affected NETGEAR switch firmware to version 12.0.2.15 or later to remediate this vulnerability. Ensure proper change management and testing procedures are followed when applying firmware updates to production network equipment.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-18838 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2017-18838 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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