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FirewareOperating system · Watchguard

CVE-2025-12196

HIGH · 7.2 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-12-04
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 12.5.14 / 12.11.5 or later.
See remediation →
78/100
Remediation priority · High
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
An Out-of-bounds Write vulnerability in WatchGuard Fireware OS's CLI could allow an authenticated privileged user to execute arbitrary code via a specially crafted CLI command.

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

An out-of-bounds write vulnerability in WatchGuard Fireware OS CLI allows authenticated privileged users to execute arbitrary code via specially crafted CLI commands. The vulnerability stems from improper bounds checking in CLI command parsing, leading to memory corruption that can be leveraged for code execution.

MitigationUpgrade Fireware OS to a version beyond 12.11.4, 12.5.13, or 2025.1.2. Additionally, restrict CLI access to only necessary trusted administrators and implement network segmentation to limit exposure.

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
FirewareOperating system
Affected:>= 2025.1, < 2025.1.3>= 12.0.0, < 12.11.5>= 12.5, < 12.5.14

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check the Fireware OS version
    Log into the CLI via SSH or console and run the command 'fwver' or 'show version' to display the installed firmware version
    Affected if The version falls within these ranges: 2025.1 through 2025.1.2, 12.0.0 through 12.11.4, or 12.5 through 12.5.13
  2. Verify CLI access is enabled
    In the Fireware Web UI, go to Network > Interfaces and check if SSH is enabled on any interface, or in CLI run 'show interface' to list interface configurations
    Affected if SSH or console CLI access is enabled and reachable on external or management interfaces
  3. Confirm privileged user accounts exist
    In Fireware Web UI, go to Users > User Management or in CLI run 'show users' to list configured accounts with administrative privileges
    Affected if There are privileged user accounts (admin or custom administrators) configured with CLI access permissions
  4. Check for external CLI exposure
    Review interface configurations in Network > Interfaces to determine if SSH/CLI is exposed to untrusted networks or the internet
    Affected if CLI (SSH) is accessible from external or untrusted network segments

You are affected if your Fireware OS version is 12.0.0-12.11.4, 12.5-12.5.13, or 2025.1-2025.1.2 AND your CLI is accessible to authenticated privileged users.

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 12.5.14 / 12.11.5 / 2025.1.3 or later
Fixed in 12.5.1412.11.52025.1.3
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Fireware OS to a version beyond 12.11.4, 12.5.13, or 2025.1.2. Additionally, restrict CLI access to only necessary trusted administrators and implement network segmentation to limit exposure.

Recommended fix High confidence

Fireware 2025.1.3+, Fireware 12.11.5+, or Fireware 12.5.14+ depending on your current branch

  1. Identify the currently installed Fireware OS version from the Firebox management interface or CLI using 'system version'
  2. Navigate to the WatchGuard portal or support site to download the appropriate firmware upgrade
  3. For Fireware 2025.1.x: upgrade to version 2025.1.3 or later
  4. For Fireware 12.0.x through 12.11.x: upgrade to version 12.11.5 or later
  5. For Fireware 12.5.x: upgrade to version 12.5.14 or later
  6. Upload the firmware file via Firebox Web UI (System > Firmware) or CLI, then reboot the device
  7. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the version in the Web UI or CLI
Caveat Review WatchGuard release notes for any configuration or compatibility notes before upgrading; ensure you have a backup of the configuration

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

Fix this in Fireware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
16.0 hours of engineering $2,840
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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-2025-12196 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