CVE-2021-37568
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 IEEE 1905 protocols. (Affected Chipsets MT7603E, MT7613, MT7615, MT7622, MT7628, MT7629, MT7915; Affected Software Versions 2.0.2; 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 MediaTek microchips (MT7603E, MT7613, MT7615, MT7622, MT7628, MT7629, MT7915) when processing IEEE 1905 protocol messages. The mishandling of this smart home/powerline communication protocol allows memory corruption, which could enable remote code execution or 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= 2.0.2= 2.0.2= 2.0.2= 2.0.2= 2.0.2= 2.0.2= 2.0.2CVSS 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 the MediaTek chipset in your deviceCheck your device documentation, network UI, or system logs for the chipset model. Common locations: router admin interface under 'Status' or 'Hardware Info', or the device's technical specifications page.Affected if The device uses any of these chips: MT7603E, MT7613, MT7615, MT7622, MT7628, MT7629, or MT7915
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Check the firmware versionAccess the device admin interface and locate the firmware version information, typically found under 'Administration', 'Firmware Upgrade', or 'Status' pages. Alternatively, check the firmware file name or release notes if you have access to the firmware binary.Affected if The installed firmware version is exactly 2.0.2 for any of the affected chipsets
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Determine if IEEE 1905 protocol is enabledCheck the device settings for IEEE 1905, also known as '1905.1' or 'Smart Home' protocol features. This may appear under wireless settings, bridge settings, or advanced network configuration. Inspect network traffic on port TCP/7915 or UDP/7915 if accessible.Affected if IEEE 1905 protocol support is enabled or the device responds to 1905 protocol discovery messages on the network
Your device is affected if it contains any of the listed MediaTek chipsets (MT7603E, MT7613, MT7615, MT7622, MT7628, MT7629, MT7915) running firmware version 2.0.2 AND has IEEE 1905 protocol functionality 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.
From vendor dataApply vendor-supplied firmware updates for affected NETGEAR devices and other products using these MediaTek chipsets. If no update is available, restrict network access to trusted devices and disable IEEE 1905 protocol features where possible.
- Consultation8.0 h
- Implementation24.0 h
- Testing16.0 h
- Review / QA8.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-37568 — 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-2021-37568 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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