Security Resilience

CVE-2023-34138

Command Injection in Zyxel Usg 20W-Vpn Firmware 4.60 – 5.37

Command Injection
Published
17 July 2023
Modified
21 November 2024
Patch / advisory
View advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 8.0
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.0068 51th percentile
Risk Priority 60 floored blend · peak EPSS

CVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.

Summary

CVE-2023-34138 is a high-severity OS Command Injection (CWE-78) vulnerability in Zyxel Usg 20W-Vpn Firmware. Its CVSS base score is 8.0 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique NTDS (T1003.003); ranked in the top 49% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

A05:2025 Injection

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

A command injection vulnerability in the hotspot management feature of the Zyxel ATP series firmware versions 4.60 through 5.36 Patch 2, USG FLEX series firmware versions 4.60 through 5.36 Patch 2, USG FLEX 50(W) series firmware versions 4.60 through 5.36…

more

Patch 2, USG20(W)-VPN series firmware versions 4.60 through 5.36 Patch 2, and VPN series firmware versions 4.60 through 5.36 Patch 2, could allow an unauthenticated, LAN-based attacker to execute some OS commands on an affected device if the attacker could trick an authorized administrator to add their IP address to the list of trusted RADIUS clients in advance.

CWE(s)
CWE-78

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1003.003 NTDS Credential Access
Adversaries may attempt to access or create a copy of the Active Directory domain database in order to steal credential information, as well as obtain other information about domain members such as devices, users, and access rights.
attack.mitre.org →
T1007 System Service Discovery Discovery
Adversaries may try to gather information about registered local system services.
attack.mitre.org →
T1010 Application Window Discovery Discovery
Adversaries may attempt to get a listing of open application windows.
attack.mitre.org →
T1021.004 SSH Lateral Movement
Adversaries may use [Valid Accounts](https://attack.
attack.mitre.org →
T1021.008 Direct Cloud VM Connections Lateral Movement
Adversaries may leverage [Valid Accounts](https://attack.
attack.mitre.org →
T1027.001 Binary Padding Stealth
Adversaries may use binary padding to add junk data and change the on-disk representation of malware.
attack.mitre.org →
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2023-33012Same product: Zyxel Usg 20W-Vpn
CVE-2023-28767Same product: Zyxel Usg 20W-Vpn
CVE-2023-34141Same product: Zyxel Usg 20W-Vpn
CVE-2023-34139Same product: Zyxel Usg 2200-Vpn
CVE-2023-27991Same product: Zyxel Usg 20W-Vpn
CVE-2023-28771Same product: Zyxel Usg Flex 100
CVE-2024-42060Same product: Zyxel Usg 20W-Vpn
CVE-2024-42059Same product: Zyxel Usg 20W-Vpn
CVE-2024-42057Same product: Zyxel Usg 20W-Vpn
CVE-2022-30525Same product: Zyxel Usg Flex 100W

Affected Assets

zyxel
usg 20w-vpn firmware
4.60 — 5.37
zyxel
usg 2200-vpn firmware
4.60 — 5.37
zyxel
usg flex 100 firmware
4.60 — 5.37
zyxel
usg flex 100w firmware
4.60 — 5.37
zyxel
usg flex 200 firmware
4.60 — 5.37
zyxel
usg flex 50 firmware
4.60 — 5.37
zyxel
usg flex 500 firmware
4.60 — 5.37
zyxel
usg flex 50w firmware
4.60 — 5.37
zyxel
usg flex 700 firmware
4.60 — 5.37
zyxel
zywall atp100 firmware
4.60 — 5.37
+12 more product configuration(s) — see NVD for full list

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)
  • V1.2.5
  • V1.2.8

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
blocks

PR.PS-06's SDLC practices directly require secure coding and input handling that blocks command-injection defects, yet the single broad outcome leaves many specific neutralization vectors and verification gaps unaddressed.

PR.PS-02 partial match
blocks

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.5.14 Information transfer partial match
removes
A.5.15 Access control partial match
removes
A.5.16 Identity management partial match
removes
A.5.17 Authentication information partial match
removes
A.5.18 Access rights partial match
removes
A.8.10 Information deletion partial match
removes

References