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Actively exploited · Published May 3, 2024 · Assigned by zdi

CVE-2023-50224TP-Link TL-WR841N dropbearpwd Improper Authentication Information Disclosure Vulnerability

Medium 6.5 Exploited

In plain English

A medium-severity authentication bypass by spoofing in Archer C5 from TP-Link. Attackers are actively exploiting it in the wild (listed by CISA on September 3, 2025). The chance it is exploited in the next 30 days is estimated at 20.0% (higher than 97% of all known vulnerabilities). Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

Severity (CVSS 3.1)6.5Medium
Exploit odds (30 days)20.0%top 2.5% of all CVEs
Exploited in the wildYesCISA KEV since Sep 3, 2025
Attack toolingNoneno public tooling known

CISA guidance

Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

Federal agencies must remediate by Sep 24, 2025.

Official description

TP-Link TL-WR841N dropbearpwd Improper Authentication Information Disclosure Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows network-adjacent attackers to disclose sensitive information on affected installations of TP-Link TL-WR841N routers. Authentication is not required to exploit this vulnerability. The specific flaw exists within the httpd service, which listens on TCP port 80 by default. The issue results from improper authentication. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to disclose stored credentials, leading to further compromise. Was ZDI-CAN-19899.

Affected products (as reported)

VendorProductVersions
TP-Link TL-WR841N 3.16.9 build 200409V8V9V10V11V12
TP-Link TL-WR841ND V8V9V10V11V12
TP-Link TL-MR6400 V1V2
TP-Link Archer C5 V2
TP-Link Archer C7 V2V3
TP-Link TL-WDR3600 V2
TP-Link TL-WDR4300 V1
TP-Link TL-WDR3500 V2
TP-Link TL-WR740N V4V5V6V7
TP-Link TL-WR741ND V4V5V6
TP-Link TL-WR749N BR 6.0BR 7.0
TP-Link TL-MR3420 V2V3V4
TP-Link TL-WR1043ND V2V3V4
TP-Link TL-WR1045ND RU V2
TP-Link TL-WR840N V2V3
TP-Link TL-WR842N V2V3V4
TP-Link TL-WR842ND V2V3V4
TP-Link TL-WR845N V1V2
TP-Link TL-WR941ND V5V6
TP-Link TL-WR945N V1
TP-Link TL-WA801ND V3V4
TP-Link TL-WA901ND V3V4V5

Weakness: CWE-290 · Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

References