R7500 FirmwareOperating system · Netgear

CVE-2018-21229

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-04-24
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 1.0.0.50 / 1.0.2.38 or later.
See remediation →
70/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
Certain NETGEAR devices are affected by incorrect configuration of security settings. This affects R7500v2 before 1.0.3.20, R7800 before 1.0.2.38, WN3000RPv3 before 1.0.2.50, WNDR4300v2 before 1.0.0.50, and WNDR4500v3 before 1.0.0.50.

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

Multiple NETGEAR router models (R7500v2, R7800, WN3000RPv3, WNDR4300v2, WNDR4500v3) contain incorrect security settings in their firmware configurations prior to specified version thresholds, potentially allowing unauthorized access or privilege escalation.

MitigationUpdate firmware on affected NETGEAR devices to the patched versions (R7500v2: 1.0.3.20, R7800: 1.0.2.38, WN3000RPv3: 1.0.2.50, WNDR4300v2: 1.0.0.50, WNDR4500v3: 1.0.0.50). For devices that cannot be updated, implement network segmentation and restrict administrative access to trusted networks.

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
R7500 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< 1.0.3.20
R7800 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< 1.0.2.38
Wn3000rp FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< 1.0.2.50
Wndr4300 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< 1.0.0.50
Wndr4500 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< 1.0.0.50

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

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 your NETGEAR router model
    Locate the model number on the device label or access the router admin interface (typically at 192.168.1.1) and check the status or system information page
    Affected if Your model is one of: R7500, R7800, WN3000RP, WNDR4300, or WNDR4500
  2. Locate the firmware version in the router admin interface
    Log into the router web interface and navigate to Administration > Firmware Update or Advanced > Administration > Router Status to find the current firmware version
    Affected if A firmware version is displayed and is lower than the threshold for your model
  3. Compare your R7500 firmware version
    If you have an R7500, check if the firmware version is below 1.0.3.20
    Affected if Firmware version is less than 1.0.3.20
  4. Compare your R7800 firmware version
    If you have an R7800, check if the firmware version is below 1.0.2.38
    Affected if Firmware version is less than 1.0.2.38
  5. Compare your WN3000RP firmware version
    If you have a WN3000RP (or WN3000RPv3), check if the firmware version is below 1.0.2.50
    Affected if Firmware version is less than 1.0.2.50
  6. Compare your WNDR4300 or WNDR4500 firmware version
    If you have a WNDR4300 or WNDR4500, check if the firmware version is below 1.0.0.50 for either model
    Affected if Firmware version is less than 1.0.0.50

You are affected if your NETGEAR router model matches one of the listed models AND the installed firmware version falls below the specific threshold for that model.

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.

From vendor data
Upgrade available Upgrade to 1.0.0.50 / 1.0.2.38 / 1.0.2.50 or later
Fixed in 1.0.0.501.0.2.381.0.2.50
Interim mitigation

Update firmware on affected NETGEAR devices to the patched versions (R7500v2: 1.0.3.20, R7800: 1.0.2.38, WN3000RPv3: 1.0.2.50, WNDR4300v2: 1.0.0.50, WNDR4500v3: 1.0.0.50). For devices that cannot be updated, implement network segmentation and restrict administrative access to trusted networks.

Fix this in R7500 Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-21229 — 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 sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2018-21229 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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