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FirewareOperating system · Watchguard

CVE-2026-3342

HIGH · 7.2 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-03-03
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 12.5.17 / 12.11.8 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 may allow an authenticated privileged administrator to execute arbitrary code with root permissions via an exposed management interface. This vulnerability affects Fireware OS 11.9 up to and including 11.12.4_Update1, 12.0 up to and including 12.11.7 and 2025.1 up to and including 2026.1.1.

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 confidence

An out-of-bounds write vulnerability in WatchGuard Fireware OS allows an authenticated privileged administrator to execute arbitrary code with root privileges through the exposed management interface. The vulnerability stems from improper bounds checking in the management daemon, enabling memory corruption that can be leveraged for privilege escalation.

MitigationUpgrade Fireware OS to versions beyond the affected releases (11.12.4_Update1, 12.11.7, 2026.1.1) when patched versions are available. Additionally, restrict management interface access to trusted networks or implement VPN access for administrators to reduce 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:>= 12.5, < 12.5.17>= 2025.1, < 2026.1.2>= 11.9, < 12.11.8

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. Confirm WatchGuard Fireware OS is installed
    Check the system hostname or system information to verify the device runs WatchGuard Fireware OS. Look for identifiers like 'watchguard' in hostname or check /proc/1/cgroup for container identification if applicable.
    Affected if The device is not running WatchGuard Fireware OS - this CVE does not apply.
  2. Determine the Fireware OS version
    Access the Firebox CLI or web UI and retrieve the OS version. In CLI, this may be available via commands like 'fwprint -v' or 'show version'. The version format is typically 11.x, 12.x, or 2025.x/2026.x.
    Affected if Unable to retrieve a valid Fireware OS version - cannot assess CVE impact.
  3. Compare installed version against affected ranges
    Check if the installed version falls within: 12.5.x where x < 17; 2025.1.x where x < 2; 11.9.x through 12.11.x where version < 12.11.8. Versions 11.12.4_Update1, 12.11.7, and 2026.1.1 are the minimum patched releases.
    Affected if Installed version is within any of the affected ranges (>=12.5 and <12.5.17, >=2025.1 and <2026.1.2, or >=11.9 and <12.11.8) - the system is vulnerable.
  4. Verify management interface accessibility
    Check network configuration to determine if the Firebox management interface (default ports 443, 4117, or 4118) is exposed to untrusted networks. Review firewall rules and interface bindings.
    Affected if Management interface is exposed to untrusted networks - the vulnerability is remotely accessible to authenticated attackers.
  5. Confirm administrative access exists
    Review user accounts with privileged administrator permissions in Firebox. Check for any active admin sessions or accounts with 'privilege elevated' status.
    Affected if There are privileged administrator accounts configured or active - these could be exploited for the privilege escalation.

The system is affected if it runs WatchGuard Fireware OS with a version matching any of the three affected ranges AND the management interface is accessible to an authenticated privileged administrator.

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 12.5.17 / 12.11.8 / 2026.1.2 or later
Fixed in 12.5.1712.11.82026.1.2
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Fireware OS to versions beyond the affected releases (11.12.4_Update1, 12.11.7, 2026.1.1) when patched versions are available. Additionally, restrict management interface access to trusted networks or implement VPN access for administrators to reduce exposure.

Recommended fix High confidence

Fireware OS 12.11.8 (for 11.9-12.11.x), 12.5.17 (for 12.5.x), or 2026.1.2 (for 2025.1/2026.1.x)

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed Fireware OS version from the management interface (Dashboard > System Status) or via CLI using the 'fwprintenv version' command.
  2. 2. Determine the appropriate upgrade path based on current version: if running 11.9.x through 12.11.7, plan upgrade to 12.11.8 or later; if running 12.5.x through 12.5.16, plan upgrade to 12.5.17 or later; if running 2025.1 or 2026.1.x, plan upgrade to 2026.1.2 or later.
  3. 3. Download the corresponding Fireware OS firmware image from the WatchGuard portal (watchguard.com) - ensure the file matches the appliance model.
  4. 4. Back up the current Firebox configuration via Web UI (Setup > Backup) or CLI using 'backup config' command.
  5. 5. Upload the new firmware image via Fireware Web UI (System > Firmware) or via CLI using the 'firmware upgrade' command.
  6. 6. After upgrade completes, verify the new version is installed and confirm all services are operational.
Caveat Upgrade may require downtime; verify compatibility with existing Firebox appliance model and review release notes for any configuration changes

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
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,800
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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-2026-3342 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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