CVE-2018-9119
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 attacker with physical access to a BrilliantTS FUZE card (MCU firmware 0.1.73, BLE firmware 0.7.4) can unlock the card, extract credit card numbers, and tamper with data on the card via Bluetooth because no authentication is needed, as demonstrated by gatttool.
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 confidenceThe BrilliantTS FUZE card suffers from a BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) authentication bypass vulnerability. An attacker with physical access can connect to the card via Bluetooth using gatttool without any authentication required, allowing extraction of stored credit card numbers and tampering with card data.
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= 0.7.4= 0.1.73CVSS 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
- Physical
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the BLE firmware versionUse a BLE scanning tool or the manufacturer's app to check the firmware version of the Fuze Card. Alternatively, connect via BLE and read the device information service (DIS) characteristics for the firmware revision.Affected if The BLE firmware version is exactly 0.7.4
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Identify the MCU firmware versionAccess the device settings through the companion mobile app or BLE connection to view the MCU firmware version. Check under device info or about section.Affected if The MCU firmware version is exactly 0.1.73
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Test BLE connection without authenticationAttempt to connect to the Fuze Card using gatttool or a similar BLE client tool without providing any PIN or authentication. Use commands like 'gatttool -b <MAC_ADDRESS> -I' followed by 'connect'.Affected if Connection succeeds without requiring any authentication or pairing PIN
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Verify access to sensitive data without authAfter connecting without authentication, attempt to read characteristics in the card data service (look for handles related to card numbers, balance, or unlock functions). Use 'gatttool' to read raw handles.Affected if Stored credit card numbers or unlock functions are readable without any authentication having been performed
You are affected if your Fuze Card runs BLE firmware 0.7.4 or MCU firmware 0.1.73 AND allows BLE connections and access to sensitive card data without requiring any authentication PIN or pairing.
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 dataImplement BLE authentication (e.g., PIN pairing, secure connection pairing) before allowing access to sensitive card data or unlock functions. Consider adding a secondary factor or requiring physical button press for pairing.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation16.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-9119 — 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-2018-9119 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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