CVE-2021-1178
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 · uneditedMultiple vulnerabilities in the web-based management interface of Cisco Small Business RV110W, RV130, RV130W, and RV215W Routers could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary code or cause an affected device to restart unexpectedly. The vulnerabilities are due to improper validation of user-supplied input in the web-based management interface. An attacker could exploit these vulnerabilities by sending crafted HTTP requests to an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary code as the root user on the underlying operating system or cause the device to reload, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition. To exploit these vulnerabilities, an attacker would need to have valid administrator credentials on the affected device. Cisco has not released software updates that address these vulnerabilities.
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 confidenceMultiple input validation vulnerabilities in the web-based management interface of Cisco Small Business RV routers (RV110W, RV130, RV130W, RV215W) allow authenticated attackers with administrator credentials to send crafted HTTP requests and either execute arbitrary code with root privileges on the underlying OS or cause the device to reload, resulting in denial of service.
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= 1.2.2.8= 1.3.1.7= 1.2.2.8= 1.3.1.7= 1.2.2.8= 1.3.1.7= 1.2.2.8= 1.3.1.7= 1.0.3.55CVSS 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
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/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 the device modelAccess the router web interface or use CLI commands (show version) to confirm the exact model number. Affected models are RV110W, RV130, RV130W, RV215W, and Cisco Application Extension Platform.Affected if The device model is one of RV110W, RV130, RV130W, RV215W, or Cisco Application Extension Platform.
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Check the installed firmware versionIn the web interface, navigate to Status > System Summary or use CLI command 'show version' to view the firmware version. Compare against the affected versions: 1.2.2.8 or 1.3.1.7 for RV routers, 1.0.3.55 for Application Extension Platform.Affected if The firmware version is exactly 1.2.2.8, 1.3.1.7 (for RV series), or 1.0.3.55 (for AXP).
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Verify web-based management interface is enabledCheck the device configuration for HTTP/HTTPS management access. In the web interface, go to Administration > Management or use CLI command 'show running-config | include http' to see if web management is enabled.Affected if The web-based management interface (HTTP or HTTPS) is enabled and accessible.
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Confirm administrator accounts existCheck for existing administrator accounts in the web interface under User Management or Administration > User Accounts. Verify if default admin accounts are active.Affected if At least one administrator account is configured on the device.
A user is affected if they have an RV110W, RV130, RV130W, RV215W, or Application Extension Platform running firmware version 1.2.2.8, 1.3.1.7, or 1.0.3.55 respectively, with the web-based management interface enabled and accessible.
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 dataSince Cisco has not released patches for these end-of-life devices, organizations should restrict web management interface access to trusted networks via VPN or ACLs, monitor for suspicious administrative activity, and plan for replacement with supported hardware.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-1178 — 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-2021-1178 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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