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Full vulnerability report · 2021
CVE-2021-1297High confidence

Cisco Small Business RV160, RV160W, RV260, RV260P, and RV260W VPN Routers Arbitrary File Write Vulnerabilities

Cisco · Cisco Small Business RV Series Router Firmware

7.5HighCVSS 3.1
Recommended action
Within 7 days

High technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Fix not verified
Optional official sources

National CERT insights
?CERT means Computer Emergency Response Team; CSIRT is the closely related term Computer Security Incident Response Team.

Select the national-authority views to include. The exact source language is shown on each matched advisory. Your choice is remembered on this device and encoded in the shareable URL.

Official European source

ENISA European Vulnerability Database

Official EUVD identifiers, advisory evidence and known-exploited context. Missing fields are not treated as evidence of low risk.

1 current
ENISA EUVD identifier

EUVD-2021-6764

No EUVD known-exploited evidence

ENISA has published the identifier mapping but no EUVD description has been stored yet.

EUVD state
Present in the current official mapping
Known exploitation
Not present in the current ENISA EUVD known-exploited dataset. This is not proof of no exploitation.
ENISA score
Not supplied in the stored EUVD record
Advisory evidence
No linked advisory details stored yet
Recommended actionWithin 7 days

High technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Fix not verified
01

What, why and how

Multiple vulnerabilities in the web-based management interface of Cisco Small Business RV160, RV160W, RV260, RV260P, and RV260W VPN Routers could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to conduct directory traversal attacks and overwrite certain files that should be restricted on an affected system. These vulnerabilities are due to insufficient input validation. An attacker could exploit these vulnerabilities by using the web-based management interface to upload a file to location on an affected device that they should not have access to. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to overwrite files on the file system of the affected device.

What

Multiple vulnerabilities in the web-based management interface of Cisco Small Business RV160, RV160W, RV260, RV260P, and RV260W VPN Routers could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to conduct directory traversal attacks and overwrite certain files that should be restricted on an affected system. These vulnerabilities are due to insufficient input validation. An attacker could exploit these vulnerabilities by using the web-based management interface to upload a file to location on an affected device that they should not have access to. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to overwrite files on the file system of the affected device.

Why

The product uses external input to construct a pathname that should be within a restricted directory, but it does not properly neutralize absolute path sequences such as /abs/path that can resolve to a location that is outside of that directory.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

What

Multiple vulnerabilities in the web-based management interface of Cisco Small Business RV160, RV160W, RV260, RV260P, and RV260W VPN Routers could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to conduct directory traversal attacks and overwrite certain files that should be restricted on an affected system. These vulnerabilities are due to insufficient input validation. An attacker could exploit these vulnerabilities by using the web-based management interface to upload a file to location on an affected device that they should not have access to. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to overwrite files on the file system of the affected device.

Why

The product uses external input to construct a pathname that should be within a restricted directory, but it does not properly neutralize absolute path sequences such as /abs/path that can resolve to a location that is outside of that directory.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

02

Exploit reality and attack path

CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.

Observed exploitation
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
No confirmed evidence

No CISA KEV match was present at the last successful refresh. This means no confirmation from that source, not proof of no exploitation.

Public PoC / exploit material
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
None recorded

No exploit-tagged reference or CISA SSVC proof-of-concept state is currently recorded. Research may still exist outside the structured feeds.

Likely attack path
a network path → Absolute Path Traversal → cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor
Attack surface
Network
Privileges required
None: unauthenticated exploitation is possible
User interaction
None
Attack complexity
Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
Security boundary
Unchanged: impact remains within the vulnerable component's security authority
Weakness
?CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness.
CWE-36

CWE-36: Absolute Path Traversal. The product uses external input to construct a pathname that should be within a restricted directory, but it does not properly neutralize absolute path sequences such as /abs/path that can resolve to a location that is outside of that directory.

CVSS vector
?CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N

Common Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.

AVNetworkAttack vector: The vulnerable component can be reached over a network.ACLowAttack complexity: No specialised conditions are required beyond attacker-controlled input.PRNonePrivileges required: The attacker does not need an account or existing privileges.UINoneUser interaction: No action by another user is required.SUnchangedScope: The security impact remains within the vulnerable component's authority.CNoneConfidentiality impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.IHighIntegrity impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.ANoneAvailability impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.
Post-exploitation / living off the land
No specific living-off-the-land technique is confirmed in the structured sources. Monitor normal administration tools for activity inconsistent with the affected service's baseline.
NetworkUnauthenticatedCWE-36
A

Official authority intelligence

Only matched European and national findings are included. Language selectors and unavailable sources are omitted.

CERT-FR · French · CERTFR-2021-AVI-082Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits Cisco

.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1288 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1289 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1289 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1290 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1290 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1291 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1291 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1292 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1292 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1293 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1293 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1294 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1294 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1295 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1295 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1296 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1296 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1297 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1297 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1313 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1313 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1314 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1314 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1315 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1315 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1316 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1316 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1317 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1317 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1318 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1318 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1319 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1319 Référence CVE CVE-2021-1320 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-1320 Ré

Official advisory ↗
JVN iPedia · Japanese · JVNDB-2021-003101複数の Cisco Small Business RV ルータにおけるパストラバーサルの脆弱性

複数の Cisco Small Business RV ルータには、パストラバーサルの脆弱性が存在します。

Official advisory ↗
03

Patch and workaround

Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.

Status
?Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Fix not verified
Affected
Cisco Small Business RV Series Router Firmware: n/a
Fixed
No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
Action
No verified patch reference is present in the current structured sources. Check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Workaround
No verified workaround is recorded. If business-safe, reduce exposure to the affected interface and allow only trusted sources until authoritative guidance is available.
04

Evidence and provenance

Published 4 Feb 2021 · Last source change 8 Nov 2024, 23:43 UTC · CWE-36 · Absolute Path Traversal

CVE recordCVE.org · 5.1
CVSS sourceCNA
EPSS source
?The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.
FIRST · tracked since 2026-08-14
European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2021-6764
Product sourceCNA
Remediation sourceCVE/CNA references
CWE sourceCNA
NVD statusNVD modified after enrichment

Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.

Material change intelligence

What changed after publication

View recent updates ↗

No material field changes have been recorded since change tracking began. Routine source refreshes and cosmetic edits are intentionally excluded.

Material fields only · duplicate refreshes suppressed · history retained for the configured operational retention period
Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report
CVE
Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
CVSS
Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
EPSS
Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
CWE
Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
CNA
CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
CISA ADP
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
NVD
National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
CERT / CSIRT
A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
PoC
Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
CSAF
Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
LoTL
Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.
Free version - for non-commercial use only.CVE-2021-1297 · cve.blacktree.nl