CriticalCVE-2023-25717

    Multiple Ruckus Wireless Products CSRF and RCE Vulnerability (CVE-2023-25717)

    Published In CISA KEV since Sources: pwn.watch, CVE.org

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    What is affected, what to do

    A vulnerability in Ruckus Wireless Access Point software allows an attacker to perform Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) or Remote Code Execution (RCE) if the web services component is enabled. This affects Ruckus ZoneDirector, SmartZone, and Solo APs. The vulnerability is actively exploited in the wild, as evidenced by its inclusion in the CISA KEV list. Affected products include various versions of ruckus_wireless_admin and smartzone_ap. An immediate upgrade to the latest version is crucial to mitigate the risk.

    The vulnerability is being actively exploited; treat it as a priority. Update Ruckus Wireless Smartzone Ap to version 6.1.0.0.9240, Ruckus Wireless Smartzone Ap to version 5.2.2.0.2064, Ruckus Wireless Smartzone Ap to version 3.6.2.0.795. Immediate actions, mitigation and detection rules are in the runbook below.

    Affected
    • Ruckus Wireless Multiple Products lte *..10.4
    • Ruckus Wireless Smartzone Ap lt *..6.1.0.0.9240
    • Ruckus Wireless Smartzone Ap lt *..5.2.2.0.2064
    • Ruckus Wireless Smartzone Ap lt *..3.6.2.0.795
    • Ruckus Wireless Smartzone Ap lt *..6.1.1.0.1274
    • Ruckus Smartzone Firmware lt *..5.2.1.3
    • Ruckus Smartzone Firmware eq 6.1.0.0.935..6.1.0.0.935
    • Ruckus Smartzone Firmware lt *..5.2.1.3.1695
    Fixed in
    • Ruckus Wireless Smartzone Ap 6.1.0.0.9240
    • Ruckus Wireless Smartzone Ap 5.2.2.0.2064
    • Ruckus Wireless Smartzone Ap 3.6.2.0.795
    • Ruckus Wireless Smartzone Ap 6.1.1.0.1274
    • Ruckus Smartzone Firmware 5.2.1.3
    • Ruckus Smartzone Firmware 5.2.1.3.1695

    Not sure whether and how you are affected? Ask a question about this vulnerability

    Metrics

    9.8

    Priority

    XIEM Effective CVSS: highest available CVSS rating from NVD and vendor data.

    Source: NVD, CVSS v3

    9.8

    CVSS v3

    Severity Critical on the scale from 0 to 10.

    Source: pwn.watch, CVE.org

    98.1 %

    EPSS score

    High — model estimates ≥ 50% chance of real-world exploitation within 30 days.

    Source: FIRST EPSS, percentile 99.91

    Show all metrics
    Severity
    Critical
    Priority (0–325)

    The priority score is a consolidated metric that condenses several individual signals into a single, action-guiding ranking: technical severity (CVSS), exploitation likelihood (EPSS), known-exploited status (KEV) and the context of the affected asset. The aim is to answer the only truly important question in vulnerability management: what first?

    Read in glossary
    230.98 Methodology
    Exploit maturity

    An exploit is code or a technique that specifically uses a concrete vulnerability to force unintended behaviour — such as executing code or escalating privileges. It is the tool that turns a theoretical flaw into a practical attack.

    Read in glossary
    actively exploited
    XIEM Effective CVSS

    XIEM® is the tiered managed-security operating model from NEOSEC and a registered trademark of NEOSEC GmbH. It extends classic SIEM — the central collection, normalisation and correlation of security-relevant events — with endpoint forensics, network visibility and deception technology, and consolidates them into three building tiers: Sentry, Orchestrate and Command.

    Read in glossary
    9.8 Methodology
    CVSS v3

    CVSS is the globally established, open standard for assessing the technical severity of a vulnerability on a scale from 0 to 10. It describes how easily a flaw can be exploited and what damage it can cause — but not how likely its actual exploitation is. CVSS and the complementary EPSS deliberately answer different questions.

    Read in glossary
    9.8
    EPSS score

    The EPSS score is the absolute model output for an individual vulnerability: the estimated probability of real-world exploitation within the next 30 days, expressed as a value between 0 and 1 (i.e. 0 % to 100 %). A score of 0.42 means „the model estimates a 42 % chance of real-world exploitation within 30 days“.

    Read in glossary
    98.1 %
    High — model estimates ≥ 50% chance of real-world exploitation within 30 days.
    EPSS percentile

    The EPSS percentile is the relative position of a vulnerability within all EPSS-scored CVEs, expressed as a value between 0 and 1. A percentile of 0.90 means „this CVE has a higher EPSS score than 90 % of all other scored CVEs“. Unlike the EPSS score, it is not a probability — but a positioning within a ranking.

    Read in glossary
    99.91
    Critical — this CVE ranks in the top fifth of all CVEs scored today (rank ≥ 80%).
    KEV status

    The KEV catalogue is a list maintained by the US authority CISA of vulnerabilities for which active exploitation in the wild has been confirmed. It answers not the question „how severe?“ but „is it already being attacked?“ — thereby sharply prioritising patching.

    Read in glossary
    Actively exploited
    Published
    In CISA KEV since

    The KEV catalogue is a list maintained by the US authority CISA of vulnerabilities for which active exploitation in the wild has been confirmed. It answers not the question „how severe?“ but „is it already being attacked?“ — thereby sharply prioritising patching.

    Read in glossary
    CISA assessment (SSVC)
    Exploitation: active · automatable · Technical impact: total
    Source: CISA Vulnrichment, as of 29 January 2025
    CWE

    CWE is a catalogue of typical weakness types in software and hardware — such as flawed input validation, unsafe memory handling or poor authentication. Where a CVE names a concrete vulnerability in a concrete product, a CWE describes the underlying class of defect.

    Read in glossary
    CWE-94

    Response and mitigation

    Why act now?

    Prioritisation rationale

    This flaw is network-reachable without authentication or user interaction, and one GET request yields full device takeover. A public proof-of-concept exists, and exploitation likelihood sits among the very highest of any CVE. Attackers mass-scan for exposed Ruckus web interfaces to enlist devices into botnets or to use them as a quiet foothold inside the network. CISA does not flag ransomware use. Typical targets are hospitality, education, healthcare, retail and municipalities running distributed Wi-Fi estates. Treat any internet-facing unit as critical and remediate today. Internal-only, segmented devices are high priority for the next maintenance window.

    1. Runbook step 1

      Immediate response (0-24 h)

      • Determine exposure: Inventory every Ruckus ZoneDirector, SmartZone and Solo AP. Confirm whether the web admin interface (HTTP/HTTPS, ports 80/443) is reachable from the internet or from user and guest VLANs. An external scan of your own ranges for /forms/doLogin reveals reachable instances.
      • Cut internet reachability now: Block inbound access to the admin web UI at the perimeter firewall/NAT. Do this before patching, because exploitation needs only a single unauthenticated GET request.
      • Upgrade firmware: The context lists SmartZone firmware 5.2.1.3 / 5.2.1.3.1695 and SmartZone AP builds 3.6.2.0.795, 5.2.2.0.2064, 6.1.0.0.9240 and 6.1.1.0.1274 as fixed. Ruckus Wireless Admin through 10.4 is affected. For ZoneDirector and Solo APs, a patch is available from the vendor — look up the exact version in the Ruckus/CommScope security advisory. Check end-of-life status; unsupported units should be treated as permanently vulnerable.
      • Rule out compromise before patching: On previously exposed devices, capture the config and running processes. Look for unknown cron entries, binaries in /tmp and outbound connections. If anything is suspicious, factory-reset and rebuild on fixed firmware rather than upgrading in place.
      • Rotate secrets: If a device was exposed, replace admin passwords, RADIUS shared secrets, PSKs and SNMP communities on affected controllers and APs. An attacker with RCE can read the full configuration.

    2. Runbook step 2

      Mitigation layers

      • Network segmentation: Restrict management to a dedicated management VLAN or a jump host. Add a core-switch or firewall ACL that drops TCP/80 and TCP/443 to AP and controller management IPs from client, guest and SSID networks.
      • Egress filtering: Deny internet-bound traffic from the AP/controller management network by default. Allow only required destinations such as NTP, syslog, RADIUS and update servers. This breaks the typical $(curl …)/wget second-stage download.
      • Configuration hardening: Disable the web service on Solo APs that are controller- or cloud-managed or that don't need a local UI. Per CISA, exploitation requires the web services component to be enabled. Turn off plain HTTP and allow HTTPS only from restricted source IPs.
      • IPS/WAF rule: Enable CVE-2023-25717 signatures in your IDS/IPS ruleset (e.g. Suricata/ET or your vendor's IPS) and set them to block. As a custom rule, drop HTTP requests to /forms/doLogin whose query string contains $(, %24%28, backticks, ;, |, or curl/wget.
      • Lifecycle: Put EoL units with no fix on the replacement roadmap and isolate them tightly until then. Document the risk acceptance for NIS2/KRITIS purposes.

    3. Runbook step 3

      Detection rules

      • Web/proxy/WAF logs: Watch for GET requests to /forms/doLogin with shell metacharacters in login_username or password. SPL example: index=web uri_path="/forms/doLogin" (uri_query="*$(*" OR uri_query="*%24%28*" OR uri_query="*curl*" OR uri_query="*wget*")
      • Network telemetry (Zeek/Suricata): Flag HTTP requests to Ruckus management IPs from external or unauthorised sources. In Zeek http.log, filter on uri starting with /forms/doLogin and a source outside the management subnet. Triage any Suricata alerts that reference CVE-2023-25717.
      • Outbound traffic from APs/controllers: Treat new destination IPs or domains from the AP management network as a strong indicator of payload staging. This applies especially to HTTP downloads with curl/Wget user agents and connections to unusual high ports. KQL shape: CommonSecurityLog | where SourceIP in (RuckusMgmtIPs) and DestinationIP !in (AllowedTargets)
      • Ruckus syslog: In syslog forwarded to the SIEM, look for login events with odd usernames or password lengths, unexpected reboots, config changes and sustained high CPU. High CPU suggests DDoS or mining abuse.
      • NetFlow: Alert on sudden high outbound packet rates from AP IPs. This is a classic sign of a compromised network device being used as a DDoS node.

    Detection rules

    No NEOSEC detection rule is available for this vulnerability yet.

    Classification under NIS2 and CRA

    Rule-based classification from exploitation status and severity. It does not replace a case-by-case assessment.

    NIS2

    NIS2 is EU Directive (EU) 2022/2555 to raise the level of cybersecurity across the Union. It substantially broadens obligations compared with the first NIS directive: more sectors, mandatory risk management, staged reporting duties and personal accountability of senior management.

    Read in glossary
    Actively exploited: treat the vulnerability as a priority in vulnerability handling under Art. 21(2)(e) NIS2. If it is exploited in your environment, check the reporting obligation under Art. 23 (early warning within 24 hours).
    CRA

    The CRA is EU Regulation (EU) 2024/2847 setting horizontal cybersecurity requirements for „products with digital elements“ — from industrial controllers and software to connected consumer devices. For the first time manufacturers must ensure security across the entire product lifecycle, handle vulnerabilities and provide security updates.

    Read in glossary
    Since 11.09.2026, manufacturers of affected products with digital elements must report actively exploited vulnerabilities under Art. 14 CRA, with an early warning within 24 hours via ENISA's single reporting platform.
    ISO/IEC 27001

    ISO/IEC 27001 is the internationally leading standard for an information security management system (ISMS). It describes a risk-based, process-oriented framework to systematically plan, implement, review and improve information security.

    Read in glossary
    Control A.8.8, management of technical vulnerabilities: assess relevance to your systems, plan remediation and keep evidence.

    Description

    Ruckus Wireless Admin through 10.4 allows Remote Code Execution via an unauthenticated HTTP GET Request, as demonstrated by a /forms/doLogin?login_username=admin&password=password$(curl substring.

    Source: pwn.watch, NVD (NIST), cvelistv5, CISA KEV Catalog, CVE.org (MITRE)

    Affected products

    The following versions are affected. Older releases of the same product line are also vulnerable unless stated otherwise.

    Affected products
    Affected versionsFixed in
    ruckuswirelessruckus_wireless_admin
    • ≤ 10.4
    • —

    Vendors and products

    Affected operating systems

    Affected operating systems
    Othercommscoperuckus_smartzone_firmware6.1.0.0.935
    Othercommscoperuckus_smartzone_firmware—
    Otherruckuswirelesssmartzone_ap—

    Weakness classes (CWE)

    • CWE-94Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection')

      Base

      The product constructs all or part of a code segment using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the syntax or behavior of the intended code segment.

      Entry at MITRE CWE-94

    Public exploit references

    Publicly reported proof-of-concepts, exploit modules and detection templates for this vulnerability. NEOSEC links to the original sources only and does not provide any exploit code.

    Public exploit references
    CISA KEV CatalogCISA Known Exploited Vulnerability (opens in a new tab)cisa.govactively exploited

    References & sources

    • support.ruckuswireless.comVendor advisory: Ruckus Wireless Multiple ProductsPatch, Product, Vendor advisory, pwn-watch
    • cybir.com2023/cve/proof-of-concept-ruckus-wireless-admin-10-4-unauthenti…Exploit, Third-party advisory
    • cisa.govknown-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2023-25717government-resource, US government resource
    • pwn.watchpwn.watch: Ruckus Wireless Multiple Products: CSRF and RCE (CVE-2023-25717)pwn-watch
    • NVD (NIST)NVD: CVE-2023-25717pwn-watch
    • cisa.govCISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalogpwn-watch
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