CVE-2018-12041
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 · uneditedAn issue was discovered on the MediaTek AWUS036NH wireless USB adapter through 5.1.25.0. Attackers can remotely deny service by sending specially constructed 802.11 frames.
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 confidenceA denial of service vulnerability exists in the MediaTek AWUS036NH wireless USB adapter firmware (versions through 5.1.25.0). Attackers can send specially crafted 802.11 (WiFi) frames to crash the device or cause it to become unresponsive, likely due to improper handling of malformed frames in the wireless firmware/driver.
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= 5.1.25.0CVSS 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
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 the wireless adapter modelCheck the USB wireless adapter connected to the system. On Windows, open Device Manager and look under Network Adapters. On Linux, run lsusb or check iwconfig output. Look for 'AWUS036NH' or 'MediaTek' in the device description.Affected if The device is a MediaTek AWUS036NH adapter
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Determine the installed firmware versionOn Windows, right-click the wireless adapter in Device Manager, select Properties, then look under the Firmware version field. On Linux, use tools like iw, iwconfig, or the driver's diagnostic tools if available. The firmware version should be listed (such as 5.1.25.0 or similar).Affected if The firmware version is 5.1.25.0 or earlier (any version through 5.1.25.0)
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Verify the adapter is active and processing wireless trafficCheck if the wireless adapter is enabled and connected to a network or in monitor/promiscuous mode. On Windows, check network status. On Linux, run iwconfig to see if the interface is up and any wireless networks are detected.Affected if The adapter is active, connected to a network, or in monitor mode (meaning it is processing 802.11 frames)
A user is affected if they have a MediaTek AWUS036NH adapter running firmware version 5.1.25.0 or earlier, and the adapter is actively processing wireless traffic where malformed 802.11 frames could be received.
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 dataApply any available firmware update from MediaTek for the AWUS036NH adapter; if no patch is available, consider replacing the affected hardware with a supported device or implement network segmentation to restrict unauthorized 802.11 frame injection from untrusted wireless networks.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-12041 — 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-2018-12041 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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