dbcve.org
R6700 FirmwareOperating system · Netgear

CVE-2021-20175

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-12-30
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable 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
Netgear Nighthawk R6700 version 1.0.4.120 does not utilize secure communication methods to the SOAP interface. By default, all communication to/from the device's SOAP Interface (port 5000) is sent via HTTP, which causes potentially sensitive information (such as usernames and passwords) to be transmitted in cleartext

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 Netgear Nighthawk R6700 router version 1.0.4.120 has a cleartext transmission vulnerability in its SOAP interface on port 5000. The SOAP service uses unencrypted HTTP instead of HTTPS, allowing sensitive credentials (usernames and passwords) to be intercepted in cleartext during transmission.

MitigationUsers should avoid transmitting sensitive credentials to the SOAP interface until Netgear releases a firmware patch enabling HTTPS. If no patch is available, consider replacing the device or isolating it on a segmented network to reduce exposure to man-in-the-middle attacks.

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
R6700 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:= 1.0.4.120

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/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 router model
    Access the router admin interface or check the device label to confirm it is a Netgear Nighthawk R6700 model
    Affected if The device is not a Netgear R6700 router
  2. Check firmware version
    Log into the router admin interface and navigate to the Firmware Update or Administration section to view the current firmware version, or use the command 'grep -i version /proc/version' if SSH/telnet access is available
    Affected if The firmware version is 1.0.4.120
  3. Verify SOAP service availability on port 5000
    From a machine on the same network, run 'nc -zv <router_ip> 5000' or use a port scanner to check if port 5000 is open and responding
    Affected if Port 5000 is open and accepting connections
  4. Confirm HTTP usage for SOAP interface
    Access 'http://<router_ip>:5000' in a web browser or use 'curl -I http://<router_ip>:5000' to verify the SOAP service responds over unencrypted HTTP rather than HTTPS
    Affected if The SOAP interface responds over HTTP (port 5000) without redirecting to HTTPS

You are affected if you are running a Netgear R6700 with firmware version 1.0.4.120 and the SOAP service on port 5000 is accessible over unencrypted HTTP.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Users should avoid transmitting sensitive credentials to the SOAP interface until Netgear releases a firmware patch enabling HTTPS. If no patch is available, consider replacing the device or isolating it on a segmented network to reduce exposure to man-in-the-middle attacks.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Netgear R6700 firmware version 1.0.4.122 or later (latest available stable release)

  1. 1. Visit the official Netgear support website and navigate to the R6700 product page
  2. 2. Download the latest available firmware version for the R6700 router
  3. 3. Access the router's web management interface at http://192.168.1.1
  4. 4. Navigate to the Administration or Advanced settings section
  5. 5. Locate the firmware update option and upload the downloaded firmware file
  6. 6. Wait for the firmware to upload and install - do not power off the router during this process
  7. 7. After reboot, verify the router is running the updated firmware version
  8. 8. If available in the firmware, enable HTTPS for the SOAP interface in the router's security settings
Caveat Firmware updates may reset router configuration to defaults; backup current settings before upgrading

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in R6700 Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,280
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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-2021-20175 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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