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Axis OsOperating system · Axis

CVE-2023-21416

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-11-21
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.12.213 / 11.7.57 or later.
See remediation →
71/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable 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
Sandro Poppi, member of the AXIS OS Bug Bounty Program, has found that the VAPIX API dynamicoverlay.cgi was vulnerable to a Denial-of-Service attack allowing for an attacker to block access to the overlay configuration page in the web interface of the Axis device. This flaw can only be exploited after authenticating with an operator- or administrator-privileged service account however the impact is equal. Axis has released patched AXIS OS versions for the highlighted flaw. Please refer to the Axis security advisory for more information and solution.

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 VAPIX API component dynamicoverlay.cgi in AXIS OS devices contains a denial-of-service vulnerability that allows an authenticated attacker with operator or administrator privileges to block access to the overlay configuration page in the web interface. The attack exploits the dynamic overlay functionality through the CGI endpoint.

MitigationApply the patched AXIS OS versions released by Axis that address this vulnerability. Refer to the Axis security advisory for the specific version numbers corresponding to each affected device model.

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
Axis OsOperating system
Affected:< 11.7.57
Axis Os 2022Operating system
Affected:< 10.12.213

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
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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. Determine the AXIS OS version
    Access the device web interface and navigate to System > About or use the VAPIX API endpoint /axis-cgi/admin/s.cgi?sv=applianceGetInfo to retrieve the firmware version. Alternatively, check the login banner or deviceinfo endpoint.
    Affected if The installed version is below 11.7.57 for standard AXIS OS releases or below 10.12.213 for the 2022 release line.
  2. Verify VAPIX API accessibility
    Confirm the device has the VAPIX web interface accessible by attempting to reach the device IP address on ports 80 or 443. Check that the /cgi-bin/ or /axis-cgi/ endpoints respond.
    Affected if The VAPIX API is reachable and the device responds to HTTP requests on the standard web ports.
  3. Check if dynamicoverlay.cgi endpoint exists
    Send a request to the endpoint /axis-cgi/dynamicoverlay.cgi (or /vapix/dynamicoverlay.cgi depending on the device) and observe the response. A vulnerable device will respond to this CGI endpoint.
    Affected if The dynamicoverlay.cgi endpoint returns any response (including error messages), indicating the vulnerable component is present and enabled.
  4. Confirm operator or administrator access is possible
    Verify that operator-level or administrator-level credentials exist on the device. Check user accounts via the web interface at Settings > Users or via the VAPIX user CGI endpoint.
    Affected if There is at least one operator or administrator user account configured with credentials that could be used to authenticate to the VAPIX API.

The device is affected if it runs AXIS OS version below 11.7.57 (or below 10.12.213 for the 2022 release line), has the VAPIX interface accessible, and the dynamicoverlay.cgi endpoint is present and responds to requests.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 10.12.213 / 11.7.57 or later
Fixed in 10.12.21311.7.57
Interim mitigation

Apply the patched AXIS OS versions released by Axis that address this vulnerability. Refer to the Axis security advisory for the specific version numbers corresponding to each affected device model.

Recommended fix High confidence

Axis OS 2022 >= 10.12.213 or Axis OS 11.x >= 11.7.57

  1. Identify the current Axis OS version running on the device through the web interface or VAPIX API
  2. For devices running Axis OS 2022: Upgrade to version 10.12.213 or higher
  3. For devices running Axis OS 11.x: Upgrade to version 11.7.57 or higher
  4. After upgrade, verify the dynamicoverlay.cgi endpoint is accessible and the overlay configuration page loads correctly
  5. Confirm the device is running a patched version by checking the Axis OS version in the web interface
Caveat Standard firmware upgrade - review Axis release notes for any configuration considerations

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

Fix this in Axis Os Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
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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-2023-21416 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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