Cyber Resilience

CVE-2025-65226

Memory Safety in Tenda Ac21 Firmware 16.03.08.16

Public PoCMemory Safety
Published
20 November 2025
Modified
21 November 2025
CVSS Score v3.1 4.3
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
EPSS Score 0.0024 15th percentile
Risk Priority 35 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2025-65226 is a medium-severity Classic Buffer Overflow (CWE-120) vulnerability in Tenda Ac21 Firmware. Its CVSS base score is 4.3 (Medium).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked at the 15th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SI-10 (Information Input Validation) and SI-16 (Memory Protection) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

Tenda AC21 V16.03.08.16 is vulnerable to Buffer Overflow via the deviceId parameter in /goform/saveParentControlInfo.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise TechniquesAI

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.
Why these techniques?

The buffer overflow in the deviceId parameter of the publicly accessible /goform/saveParentControlInfo endpoint directly enables remote exploitation of a public-facing web application (T1190).

Confidence: HIGH · MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise v19.0

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2025-11091Same product: Tenda Ac21
CVE-2025-10838Same product: Tenda Ac21
CVE-2026-4565Same product: Tenda Ac21
CVE-2025-13446Same product: Tenda Ac21
CVE-2026-2148Same product: Tenda Ac21
CVE-2026-1637Same product: Tenda Ac21
CVE-2025-65222Same product: Tenda Ac21
CVE-2025-65221Same product: Tenda Ac21
CVE-2026-2147Same product: Tenda Ac21
CVE-2025-12611Same product: Tenda Ac21

Affected Assets

tenda
ac21 firmware
16.03.08.16

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)
  • SI-10 Information Input Validation
  • SI-16 Memory Protection
Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)
  • SI-2 Flaw Remediation
Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V5.2.1

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

prevent

Directly requires validation of input size/length for parameters such as deviceId before any copy operation, blocking the CWE-120 buffer overflow at the /goform/saveParentControlInfo endpoint.

prevent

Enforces memory protections (e.g., ASLR, non-executable stacks) that can prevent successful exploitation even if an oversized deviceId value reaches the vulnerable copy.

respondrecover

Mandates timely application of vendor patches that correct the unchecked buffer copy in saveParentControlInfo on the Tenda AC21 firmware.

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 development practices directly enforce bounds checking and input validation that prevent classic buffer overflows.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Vulnerability identification processes such as code review or scanning detect classic buffer overflows before exploitation.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Routine patching replaces vulnerable code containing unchecked buffer copies with corrected versions.

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.

prevents

Secure coding directly requires bounds-checked memory operations, addressing the root cause of CWE-120.

detects

Security testing in development and acceptance can detect buffer overflows through fuzzing and static analysis, though it does not prevent them at the source.

prevents

Secure development life cycle mandates processes that can include input validation and bounds checking to prevent buffer overflows.

prevents

Application security requirements can specify input-size validation and safe buffer handling to mitigate classic buffer overflows.

prevents

Secure system architecture and engineering principles promote defensive coding patterns that reduce the likelihood of unchecked buffer copies.

References