Evidence used
- No CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.
- EPSS is 0.11% for the current model date.
BlackTreeCVE IntelligenceFull vulnerability report · 2023
CVE-2023-2626High confidence
Authentication Bypass in OpenThread Boarder Router devices
Google · Nest Hub Max
7.5HighCVSS 3.1
Within 7 days
Fix not verifiedHigh technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.
R
Open reassessment dashboard →Operational reassessment
Published severity in operational context
Published severityHigh→Operational priority:High, unchanged from published severity.unchanged
Compensating controls
- Restrict local access and enforce least privilege on affected hosts.
- Monitor vendor guidance and exploitation sources for a material change.
Verification
- Confirm that the asset runs Google Nest Hub Max and falls inside the recorded affected range.
- Recheck the vendor advisory before scheduling a change because no verified fixed version is currently retained.
- Validate exposure, authentication requirements and compensating controls in the actual environment.
- Reopen this reassessment when CVSS, KEV, EPSS, exploit evidence or remediation changes.
High technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.
Fix not verified01
What, why and how
There exists an authentication bypass vulnerability in OpenThread border router devices and implementations. This issue allows unauthenticated nodes to craft radio frames using “Key ID Mode 2”: a special mode using a static encryption key to bypass security checks, resulting in arbitrary IP packets being allowed on the Thread network. This provides a pathway for an attacker to send/receive arbitrary IPv6 packets to devices on the LAN, potentially exploiting them if they lack additional authentication or contain any network vulnerabilities that would normally be mitigated by the home router’s NAT firewall. Effected devices have been mitigated through an automatic update beyond the affected range.
What
There exists an authentication bypass vulnerability in OpenThread border router devices and implementations. This issue allows unauthenticated nodes to craft radio frames using “Key ID Mode 2”: a special mode using a static encryption key to bypass security checks, resulting in arbitrary IP packets being allowed on the Thread network. This provides a pathway for an attacker to send/receive arbitrary IPv6 packets to devices on the LAN, potentially exploiting them if they lack additional authentication or contain any network vulnerabilities that would normally be mitigated by the home router’s NAT firewall. Effected devices have been mitigated through an automatic update beyond the affected range.
Why
The affected component does not establish the requesting party's identity reliably before granting access.
How
An attacker operating through an adjacent network may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may bypass an access boundary or take over an account.
What
There exists an authentication bypass vulnerability in OpenThread border router devices and implementations. This issue allows unauthenticated nodes to craft radio frames using “Key ID Mode 2”: a special mode using a static encryption key to bypass security checks, resulting in arbitrary IP packets being allowed on the Thread network. This provides a pathway for an attacker to send/receive arbitrary IPv6 packets to devices on the LAN, potentially exploiting them if they lack additional authentication or contain any network vulnerabilities that would normally be mitigated by the home router’s NAT firewall. Effected devices have been mitigated through an automatic update beyond the affected range.
Why
The affected component does not establish the requesting party's identity reliably before granting access.
How
An attacker operating through an adjacent network may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may bypass an access boundary or take over an account.
02
Exploit reality and attack path
CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.
Observed exploitation No confirmed evidence
?
Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.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 None recorded
?
Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.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
- an adjacent network → Improper Authentication → bypass an access boundary or take over an account
- Attack surface
- Adjacent
- Privileges required
- None: unauthenticated exploitation is possible
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- High: exploitation depends on specific conditions
- 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-287 ↗
CWE-287: Improper Authentication. When an actor claims to have a given identity, the product does not prove or insufficiently proves that the claim is correct.
- CVSS vector
?
CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity. CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HCommon Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.
AVAdjacentAttack vector: The attacker must be on an adjacent or logically close network.ACHighAttack complexity: Successful exploitation depends on specific conditions outside the attacker's direct control.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.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.IHighIntegrity impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.AHighAvailability impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.- Post-exploitation / living off the land
- Stolen credentials, tokens and legitimate administration functions may provide continued access without deploying a large custom toolset.
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
- Nest Hub Max: 10.20221207.2.109 < 10.20221207.2.120
- Nest Hub (2nd. gen) w/ Sleep Tracking: 10.20221207.2.100038 < 10.20221207.2.100042
- Nest Wifi 6E: 1.59 < 1.63.355999
- Google Wifi (next gen): 14150.881.7 < 14150.882.9
- Nest Wifi Point: 1.56.1 < 1.56.368671
- 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. Limit untrusted access and use least privilege until authoritative guidance is available.
04
Evidence and provenance
Published 25 Jul 2023 · Last source change 2 Aug 2024, 06:26 UTC · CWE-287 · Improper Authentication
CVE recordCVE.org · 5.1
CVSS sourceCNA
EPSS source FIRST · tracked since 2026-08-14
?
The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2023-34097
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
View recent updates ↗What changed after publication
No material field changes have been recorded since change tracking began. Routine source refreshes and cosmetic edits are intentionally excluded.
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.