Cyber Resilience

CVE-2023-46574

RCE in Totolink A3700R Firmware 9.1.2u.6165_20211012

Public PoCHigh EPSSRCECommand Injection
Published
25 October 2023
Modified
21 November 2024
CVSS Score v3.1 9.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.65 99.2th percentile
Risk Priority 97 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2023-46574 is a critical-severity Command Injection (CWE-77) vulnerability in Totolink A3700R Firmware. Its CVSS base score is 9.8 (Critical).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Command and Scripting Interpreter (T1059); ranked in the top 0.8% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

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

CVE-2023-46574 is a command-injection vulnerability (CWE-77) affecting the TOTOLINK A3700R wireless router running firmware version 9.1.2u.6165_20211012. The flaw resides in the UploadFirmwareFile function, where the FileName parameter is insufficiently sanitized before being passed to a system command, enabling arbitrary code execution. The issue carries a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.8 with a network attack vector, low complexity, and no required privileges or user interaction.

An unauthenticated remote attacker can send a crafted HTTP request containing a malicious FileName value to the router’s firmware-upload endpoint. Successful exploitation grants the attacker the ability to execute operating-system commands with the privileges of the web-server process, resulting in complete control over the device, including the capacity to read or modify configuration and firmware data or to pivot into the attached network.

Public references consist of technical write-ups hosted on GitHub that reproduce the flaw but do not describe vendor patches or mitigation steps. The associated EPSS score remains elevated (current 0.9358, peak 0.9402), indicating sustained exploitation interest since disclosure.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

A05:2025 Injection

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

An issue in TOTOLINK A3700R v.9.1.2u.6165_20211012 allows a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code via the FileName parameter of the UploadFirmwareFile function.

CWE(s)
CWE-77

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 →
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 →
T1059.003 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 →
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-2024-7160Same product: Totolink A3700R
CVE-2023-52027Same product: Totolink A3700R
CVE-2024-22663Same product: Totolink A3700R
CVE-2023-52029Same product: Totolink A3700R
CVE-2023-52028Same product: Totolink A3700R
CVE-2023-50147Same product: Totolink A3700R
CVE-2023-48192Same product: Totolink A3700R
CVE-2023-52030Same product: Totolink A3700R
CVE-2024-37640Same product: Totolink A3700R
CVE-2024-37633Same product: Totolink A3700R

Affected Assets

totolink
a3700r firmware
9.1.2u.6165_20211012

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

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.

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