Cyber Resilience

CVE-2023-23369

RCE in Qnap Qts 4.2.6 … 5.1.0.2348

RCECommand Injection
Published
03 November 2023
Modified
21 November 2024
Patch / advisory
View advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 9.0
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.15 96th percentile
Risk Priority 74 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2023-23369 is a critical-severity Command Injection (CWE-77) vulnerability in Qnap Qts. Its CVSS base score is 9.0 (Critical).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Command and Scripting Interpreter (T1059); ranked in the top 4% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

An OS command injection vulnerability tracked as CVE-2023-23369 affects multiple versions of QNAP QTS, Multimedia Console, and the Media Streaming add-on. The flaw, assigned CWE-77 and CWE-78, permits unauthenticated remote attackers to execute arbitrary operating-system commands over the network, carrying a CVSS 3.1 score of 9.0 that reflects high impact across confidentiality, integrity, and availability with changed scope.

Successful exploitation requires no credentials or user interaction, although the attack vector is rated with high complexity. An attacker positioned on the network can leverage the injection to run commands on the affected QNAP device, potentially leading to full system compromise.

QNAP has released fixed builds that remediate the issue, including Multimedia Console 2.1.2 and 1.4.8, QTS 5.1.0.2399 and later maintenance releases, several QTS 4.3.x and 4.2.6 builds from June 2023 onward, and Media Streaming add-on versions 500.1.1.2 and 500.0.0.11. The vendor advisory QSA-23-35 lists the precise updated builds and urges immediate installation.

The associated EPSS score has remained flat at 0.1181 with no material increase since disclosure.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

A05:2025 Injection

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

An OS command injection vulnerability has been reported to affect several QNAP operating system versions. If exploited, the vulnerability could allow users to execute commands via a network. We have already fixed the vulnerability in the following versions: Multimedia Console…

more

2.1.2 ( 2023/05/04 ) and later Multimedia Console 1.4.8 ( 2023/05/05 ) and later QTS 5.1.0.2399 build 20230515 and later QTS 4.3.6.2441 build 20230621 and later QTS 4.3.4.2451 build 20230621 and later QTS 4.3.3.2420 build 20230621 and later QTS 4.2.6 build 20230621 and later Media Streaming add-on 500.1.1.2 ( 2023/06/12 ) and later Media Streaming add-on 500.0.0.11 ( 2023/06/16 ) and later

CWE(s)
CWE-77CWE-78

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1059 Command and Scripting Interpreter Execution
Adversaries may abuse command and script interpreters to execute commands, scripts, or binaries.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.003 Windows Command Shell Execution
Adversaries may abuse the Windows command shell for execution.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.004 Unix Shell Execution
Adversaries may abuse Unix shell commands and scripts for execution.
attack.mitre.org →
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.001 PowerShell Execution
Adversaries may abuse PowerShell commands and scripts for execution.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.008 Network Device CLI Execution
Adversaries may abuse scripting or built-in command line interpreters (CLI) on network devices to execute malicious command and payloads.
attack.mitre.org →
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2025-22481Same product: Qnap Qts
CVE-2024-53692Same product: Qnap Qts
CVE-2024-21903Same product: Qnap Qts
CVE-2025-30264Same product: Qnap Qts
CVE-2020-2509Same product: Qnap Qts
CVE-2024-38641Same product: Qnap Qts
CVE-2023-41281Same product: Qnap Qts
CVE-2023-41283Same product: Qnap Qts
CVE-2023-45025Same product: Qnap Qts
CVE-2023-41282Same product: Qnap Qts

Affected Assets

qnap
qts
4.2.6, 4.3.3.0174, 4.3.3.0868, 4.3.3.0998, 4.3.3.1051
qnap
multimedia console
1.4.3, 1.4.4, 1.4.5, 1.4.6, 1.4.7
qnap
media streaming add-on
500.0.0.0, 500.0.0.1, 500.0.0.10, 500.0.0.3, 500.0.0.4

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

—

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

—

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

—

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V1.2.3
  • V1.2.5
  • V1.2.8
  • V1.2.9

Likely Mitigating Controls AI

Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.

SC-27 Platform-independent Applications
addresses: CWE-78

Platform-independent apps typically execute inside a managed runtime or sandbox that restricts direct OS command execution, reducing the ability to exploit OS command injection.

SI-10 Information Input Validation
addresses: CWE-78

Validates inputs to block special elements that would alter OS command execution.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices directly require input validation and neutralization that prevent command injection.

DE.CM-09 partial match
prevents

Runtime monitoring of software and data can detect anomalous command execution resulting from injection.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Identifying recorded vulnerabilities enables remediation of command-injection flaws before exploitation.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Routine patching/maintenance can remediate known command-injection CVEs in dependencies (partial forward) but does nothing to stop developers from introducing improper neutralization in custom code (none reverse).

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

A.8.28 Secure coding mostly match
prevents

Secure coding standards require proper escaping and parameterization of commands, directly eliminating CWE-77.

A.8.29 Security testing in development and acceptance mostly match
finds

Security testing in development catches command-injection vulnerabilities before release.

A.8.25 Secure development life cycle partial match
prevents

Secure development life cycle mandates input validation and command construction practices that directly prevent command injection.

A.8.26 Application security requirements partial match
prevents

Application security requirements explicitly call for controls against injection flaws including command injection.

A.8.27 Secure system architecture and engineering principles partial match
prevents

Secure architecture principles reduce the attack surface but do not prescribe the specific neutralization techniques needed.

A.8.31 Separation of development, test and production environments none match
none

Environment separation limits the blast radius of an exploited command injection but does not prevent the flaw itself.

References