Gs116e FirmwareOperating system · Netgear

CVE-2020-35229

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-03-10
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
93/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
The authentication token required to execute NSDP write requests on NETGEAR JGS516PE/GS116Ev2 v2.6.0.43 devices is not properly invalidated and can be reused until a new token is generated, which allows attackers (with access to network traffic) to effectively gain administrative privileges.

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 · high confidence

The NSDP write request authentication token on NETGEAR JGS516PE and GS116Ev2 switches (firmware v2.6.0.43) is not invalidated after use, allowing captured tokens to be replayed by attackers with network traffic access to gain administrative privileges.

MitigationApply NETGEAR firmware updates when available; until then, restrict network access to trusted personnel and monitor for suspicious NSDP traffic patterns.

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
Gs116e FirmwareOperating system
Affected:= 2.6.0.43
Jgs516pe FirmwareOperating system
Affected:= 2.6.0.43

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
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:A/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 switch model
    Locate the physical switch or check its management interface to confirm the model number is either GS116E or JGS516PE
    Affected if The model is GS116E or JGS516PE and matches the affected version in step 2
  2. Check firmware version
    Access the switch web interface or CLI and locate the firmware version information, typically found under System or Administration settings
    Affected if The firmware version is exactly 2.6.0.43
  3. Verify NSDP is enabled
    Check the switch configuration for NSDP (Netgear Switch Discovery Protocol) or network discovery settings, typically found under Port Settings or Network Management options
    Affected if NSDP protocol is enabled on the switch
  4. Inspect NSDP traffic for token reuse
    Capture network traffic on the segment using packet capture tools and examine NSDP packets for authentication tokens that may be reused across multiple sessions
    Affected if The same authentication token appears in multiple NSDP requests from the switch

A user is affected if they have a GS116E or JGS516PE switch running firmware version 2.6.0.43 with NSDP enabled, as the authentication token can be replayed to gain administrative access.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply NETGEAR firmware updates when available; until then, restrict network access to trusted personnel and monitor for suspicious NSDP traffic patterns.

Fix this in Gs116e Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
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Scan for this in your stack

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dbcve dependency scanner

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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-2020-35229 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