CVE-2026-36538

Description

Netis AC1200 Router NC21 V4.0.1.4296 contains a hard-coded root credential stored in /etc/shadow.sample. The password for the root account is set to the trivially weak value root, allowing an attacker with access to the device to authenticate as root and gain full control of the underlying operating system.

CVSS v3.1 Score

7.3

HIGH

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

EPSS — Exploit Prediction

0.0031

Probability of exploitation

0.23%

Percentile rank

EPSS estimates the probability that this vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. A higher score means more likely to be exploited.

Weakness Type (CWE)

CWE-798 CWE-798

References

Other References

http://netis-system.com https://github.com/sir3ns/cve-disclosure/blob/main/CVE-2026-36538/readme.md https://github.com/sir3ns/cve-disclosure/blob/main/CVE-2026-36538/readme.md

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-36538? +

Netis AC1200 Router NC21 V4.0.1.4296 contains a hard-coded root credential stored in /etc/shadow.sample. The password for the root account is set to the trivially weak value root, allowing an attacker with access to the device to authenticate as root and gain full control of the underlying operating system. It has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.3 (HIGH).

How severe is CVE-2026-36538? +

CVE-2026-36538 has a CVSS v3.1 score of 7.3 out of 10, rated HIGH. This is a high-severity vulnerability that should be prioritized for patching. The EPSS score is 0.0031, placing it in the 0th percentile for exploitation probability.

How do I check if I'm vulnerable to CVE-2026-36538? +

You can use Secably's free Website Scanner to check your website for known vulnerabilities. For infrastructure scanning, use the Port Scanner to identify exposed services that may be affected. Check the vendor advisories linked above for specific patch and version information.

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