dbcve.org
Bcm43xx Wi Fi Chipset FirmwareOperating system · Broadcom

CVE-2017-9417

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-06-04
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
Broadcom BCM43xx Wi-Fi chips allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via unspecified vectors, aka the "Broadpwn" issue.

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 confidence

Vulnerability in Broadcom BCM43xx Wi-Fi chip firmware allows remote attackers to achieve arbitrary code execution through the Wi-Fi interface. The specific exploitation mechanism is not detailed in available documentation.

MitigationApply vendor-provided firmware updates for affected BCM43xx chips; given this is a chip-level vulnerability, device manufacturers must push firmware updates to end-user devices.

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
Bcm43xx Wi Fi Chipset FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions

CVSS 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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify Wi-Fi hardware vendor and model
    Run commands such as 'lspci -v' (Linux), 'system_profiler SPBluetoothDataType' (macOS), or check Device Manager (Windows) to list network adapters. Look for any Wi-Fi adapter listing Broadcom and the specific chipset model number containing 'BCM43xx'.
    Affected if The system uses a Broadcom Wi-Fi adapter with chipset model matching BCM43xx pattern (e.g., BCM4311, BCM4312, BCM4321, BCM4322, etc.)
  2. Confirm the exact chipset variant
    Use 'lspci -nnk' on Linux or check the specific driver details to extract the full PCI ID or device ID. Cross-reference against known Broadcom BCM43xx identifiers in publicly available hardware databases.
    Affected if The chipset identifier matches any BCM43xx variant (the vulnerability applies to the entire BCM43xx family)
  3. Retrieve the installed firmware version
    On Linux, check /sys/class/net/wlan*/device/firmware_version or run 'dmesg | grep -i firmware' to locate firmware loading messages. On other platforms, use manufacturer diagnostic tools or check the wireless adapter properties for firmware revision information.
    Affected if A firmware version is reported for a BCM43xx adapter (all versions are affected according to the CVE)
  4. Verify Wi-Fi interface status
    Check if the wireless interface is active using 'ip link show' (Linux), 'networksetup -getairportpower en0' (macOS), or 'netsh wlan show interfaces' (Windows). The interface need not be connected to a network, just powered on.
    Affected if The Wi-Fi interface is enabled (powered up) on a BCM43xx device - the attack vector is the Wi-Fi interface itself

If the system contains any Broadcom BCM43xx Wi-Fi chipset variant with an enabled Wi-Fi interface, the environment is affected by this vulnerability since all firmware versions are impacted.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply vendor-provided firmware updates for affected BCM43xx chips; given this is a chip-level vulnerability, device manufacturers must push firmware updates to end-user devices.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Firmware update must be obtained from the device manufacturer (e.g., laptop, smartphone, IoT device vendor) as Broadcom provides firmware updates to OEMs rather than end users. No specific fixed firmware version is documented in available references.

  1. Contact your device manufacturer (laptop, phone, IoT device vendor) to check if a firmware update is available for the Broadcom BCM43xx Wi-Fi chipset
  2. If no update is available from your device vendor, consider replacing the affected device with one that uses an alternative Wi-Fi chipset
  3. As a temporary mitigation, disable Wi-Fi and use wired Ethernet connections where possible
  4. For network infrastructure, implement network segmentation to isolate vulnerable devices
  5. Monitor vendor security advisories and device manufacturer update channels for future firmware releases
Caveat Firmware updates for embedded Wi-Fi chipsets may have compatibility implications; test thoroughly in a controlled environment before deploying broadly to production devices.

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Bcm43xx Wi Fi Chipset Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2017-9417 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data