CVE-2018-11681
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 · uneditedDefault and unremovable support credentials (user:nwk password:nwk2) allow attackers to gain total super user control of an IoT device through a TELNET session to products using the RadioRA 2 Lutron integration protocol Revision M to Revision Y. NOTE: The vendor disputes this id as not being a vulnerability because what can be done through the ports revolve around controlling lighting, not code execution. A certain set of commands are listed, which bear some similarity to code, but they are not arbitrary and do not allow admin-level control of a machine
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 confidenceHardcoded, non-removable credentials (username: nwk, password: nwk2) are present in Lutron RadioRA 2 integration protocol revisions M through Y, allowing unauthorized TELNET access. Attackers with network access can authenticate using these default credentials to gain super-user control of affected IoT lighting control 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 dataall versionsall versionsall versionsCVSS 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:3.1/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify Lutron devices on the networkScan network for devices with manufacturer 'Lutron' or product identifiers matching 'Stanza', 'RadioRA 2', or 'Homeworks QS' using network discovery tools or asset inventoryAffected if Devices match any of the three affected product lines (Stanza, RadioRA 2, Homeworks QS)
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Check if TELNET port 23 is exposedScan targeted Lutron devices for open port 23 (TELNET) using nmap or equivalent port scannerAffected if Port 23 is open and accessible from your network segment
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Verify hardcoded credentials are acceptedAttempt TELNET connection to the device using username 'nwk' and password 'nwk2'Affected if Authentication succeeds with these hardcoded credentials, granting access to the device
You are affected if you have any Lutron Stanza, RadioRA 2, or Homeworks QS devices with TELNET port 23 accessible and the credentials nwk/nwk2 successfully authenticate.
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 dataIsolate affected devices on a restricted network segment or behind a firewall to limit TELNET exposure; contact Lutron for firmware updates that may address the hardcoded credentials; disable TELNET if not required.
- 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-2018-11681 — 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-2018-11681 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data