CVE-2023-38096
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 · uneditedNETGEAR ProSAFE Network Management System MyHandlerInterceptor Authentication Bypass Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to bypass authentication on affected installations of NETGEAR ProSAFE Network Management System. Authentication is not required to exploit this vulnerability. The specific flaw exists within the MyHandlerInterceptor class. The issue results from improper implementation of the authentication mechanism. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to bypass authentication on the system. . Was ZDI-CAN-19718.
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 confidenceThe vulnerability exists in the MyHandlerInterceptor class of NETGEAR ProSAFE Network Management System, where the authentication mechanism is improperly implemented. This allows remote attackers to bypass authentication entirely without requiring any credentials, potentially gaining full administrative access to the network management system.
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< 1.7.0.20CVSS 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
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/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 installed NMS versionAccess the Netgear ProSAFE NMS web interface and navigate to the Help > About or System > Status section to view the software version. Alternatively, check the installation directory for version files or use any available CLI tools.Affected if The displayed version is lower than 1.7.0.20 (for example, 1.6.x, 1.5.x, or earlier releases)
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Locate MyHandlerInterceptor classInspect the application deployment files (WAR or exploded directory) for the MyHandlerInterceptor class. This is typically found in the web application's compiled classes or source code under the interceptors or handlers package.Affected if The MyHandlerInterceptor class exists in the deployed application and is responsible for authentication handling in the request processing chain
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Verify authentication interceptor configurationReview the Spring or framework configuration files (such as applicationContext.xml, web.xml, or equivalent) to confirm that MyHandlerInterceptor is registered and actively intercepting requests to protected URLs.Affected if MyHandlerInterceptor is mapped to intercept authentication-required endpoints without proper credential validation logic
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Assess network exposure of management interfaceDetermine if the NMS web management port (typically 8080, 8443, or 443) is accessible from untrusted network segments or the public internet by reviewing firewall rules, NAT configurations, and ACLs.Affected if The management interface is reachable from outside the trusted internal network, making it exploitable by remote attackers
You are affected if your Netgear ProSAFE NMS version is below 1.7.0.20 AND the MyHandlerInterceptor authentication bypass is present AND the management interface is network-accessible to untrusted users.
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 · scoped1.7.0.20
Apply vendor-provided security patches immediately. If no patch is available, restrict network access to the management interface via firewall or VPN, and implement additional authentication layers such as multi-factor authentication.
1.7.0.20 or later
- Upgrade NETGEAR ProSAFE Network Management System to version 1.7.0.20 or later
- After upgrade, verify that authentication is properly required for all administrative functions
- Confirm the MyHandlerInterceptor class now properly validates authentication sessions
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 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-2023-38096 — 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-2023-38096 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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