CVE-2023-26566
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 · uneditedSangoma FreePBX 1805 through 2203 on Linux contains hardcoded credentials for the Asterisk REST Interface (ARI), which allows remote attackers to reconfigure Asterisk and make external and internal calls via HTTP and WebSocket requests sent to the API.
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 confidenceSangoma FreePBX versions 1805 through 2203 contain hardcoded credentials embedded in the system for the Asterisk REST Interface (ARI). Attackers can use these credentials to send HTTP and WebSocket API requests, allowing them to reconfigure Asterisk settings and initiate external and internal phone calls without authentication.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
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
- Low
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- Low
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:L
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 FreePBX installationCheck if the target system has FreePBX installed by looking for FreePBX directories (commonly /var/www/html/freepbx or /usr/share/freepbx) or by running 'fwconsole ma list' if the fwconsole utility is available.Affected if FreePBX is not installed on the system.
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Check FreePBX versionRun 'fwconsole version' or look for the version file at /etc/freepbx.conf to determine the installed FreePBX version number.Affected if The installed version falls within the range 1805 through 2203.
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Verify ARI is enabledCheck Asterisk configuration files (typically /etc/asterisk/res_ari.conf or /etc/asterisk/http.conf) or access the FreePBX ARI settings module to confirm the Asterisk REST Interface is enabled.Affected if ARI is enabled and configured on the system.
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Inspect ARI user accountsExamine the ARI configuration for user accounts - check /etc/asterisk/ari.conf, the Asterisk database, or FreePBX's ARI user management interface for any configured ARI users and their credentials.Affected if Hardcoded ARI credentials exist or unexpected ARI user accounts are present.
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Review ARI API access logsCheck Asterisk logs (typically /var/log/asterisk/full or the Asterisk CDR/AMI logs) for HTTP/WebSocket requests to the ARI endpoint, looking for unauthorized API calls or unexpected call initiation activity.Affected if There is evidence of API calls from untrusted sources or unauthorized call activity.
The environment is affected if FreePBX versions 1805 through 2203 are installed with the ARI interface enabled, regardless of whether hardcoded credentials have been exploited yet.
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 dataImmediately change or remove hardcoded ARI credentials and implement proper authentication mechanisms. Restrict ARI access to trusted IPs or networks and audit for any unauthorized configuration changes or call activity.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,544.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-26566 — 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-2023-26566 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data