CVE-2021-37561
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 · uneditedMediaTek microchips, as used in NETGEAR devices through 2021-11-11 and other devices, mishandle the WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup) protocol. (Affected Chipsets MT7603E, MT7610, MT7612, MT7613, MT7615, MT7620, MT7622, MT7628, MT7629, MT7915; Affected Software Versions 7.4.0.0; Out-of-bounds write).
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 confidenceAn out-of-bounds write vulnerability exists in the WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup) protocol implementation on multiple MediaTek chipsets (MT7603E, MT7610, MT7612, MT7613, MT7615, MT7620, MT7622, MT7628, MT7629, MT7915). The flaw allows potential remote code execution or denial of service via specially crafted WPS messages, as the chipset mishandles WPS protocol operations leading to memory corruption.
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= 7.4.0.0= 7.4.0.0= 7.4.0.0= 7.4.0.0= 7.4.0.0= 7.4.0.0= 7.4.0.0= 7.4.0.0CVSS 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
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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 MediaTek chipset modelAccess the device admin interface or check device specifications to determine the Wi-Fi chipset in use. Look for MT7603E, MT7610, MT7612, MT7613, MT7615, MT7620, MT7622, MT7628, MT7629, or MT7915.Affected if The device uses any of these MediaTek chipsets.
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Check firmware versionIn the device admin interface, navigate to the firmware or status page to view the installed firmware version. Compare against 7.4.0.0.Affected if The installed firmware version is exactly 7.4.0.0.
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Verify WPS is enabledIn the device admin interface, check the wireless or WPS settings to see if Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) is currently enabled.Affected if WPS is enabled and active on the device.
The device is affected if it uses one of the listed MediaTek chipsets, runs firmware version 7.4.0.0, and has WPS enabled.
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.
dbcve · scopedApply vendor-supplied firmware updates for affected MediaTek chipset-based devices (including NETGEAR products). Until patches are available, consider disabling WPS on affected devices or network segmentation to limit exposure.
Vendor-provided firmware version newer than 7.4.0.0 (post-November 2021)
- 1. Identify the specific device model using the affected MediaTek chipset (MT7603E, MT7612, MT7613, MT7615, MT7622, MT7628, MT7629, or MT7915)
- 2. Check the device vendor's support website for firmware updates released after November 2021
- 3. Download and install the latest firmware version provided by the device manufacturer
- 4. Verify the firmware version after update to confirm the fix
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation8.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-37561 — 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-2021-37561 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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