Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-13728

Exposed Creds in Watchguard Fireware 12.1 – 12.12.1

Exposed Creds
Published
03 July 2026
Modified
10 August 2026
Patch / advisory
View advisory
CVSS Score v4 5.9
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:H/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:L/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
EPSS Score 0.0015 4th percentile
Risk Priority 23 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2026-13728 is a medium-severity Use of Hard-coded Credentials (CWE-798) vulnerability in Watchguard Fireware. Its CVSS base score is 5.9 (Medium).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Unsecured Credentials (T1552); ranked at the 4th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to IA-5 (Authenticator Management) and SC-12 (Cryptographic Key Establishment and Management) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

A07:2025 Authentication Failures

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

In exception circumstances, WatchGuard Fireware OS on a FireCluster may use a hard-coded encryption key to encrypt saved credentials for Access Portal resources. This vulnerability does not affect devices that do not support the Access Portal feature or standalone Fireboxes…

more

not deployed in a FireCluster.

CWE(s)
CWE-798

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1552 Unsecured Credentials Credential Access
Adversaries may search compromised systems to find and obtain insecurely stored credentials.
attack.mitre.org →
T1552.001 Credentials In Files Credential Access
Adversaries may search local file systems and remote file shares for files containing insecurely stored credentials.
attack.mitre.org →
T1078 Valid Accounts Stealth
Adversaries may obtain and abuse credentials of existing accounts as a means of gaining Initial Access, Persistence, Privilege Escalation, or Defense Evasion.
attack.mitre.org →
T1078.001 Default Accounts Stealth
Adversaries may obtain and abuse credentials of a default account as a means of gaining Initial Access, Persistence, Privilege Escalation, or Defense Evasion.
attack.mitre.org →
T1552.004 Private Keys Credential Access
Adversaries may search for private key certificate files on compromised systems for insecurely stored credentials.
attack.mitre.org →
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2026-13079Same product: Watchguard Firebox M270
CVE-2026-3343Same product: Watchguard Firebox M270
CVE-2026-13373Same product: Watchguard Firebox M270
CVE-2025-9242Same product: Watchguard Firebox M270
CVE-2026-13376Same product: Watchguard Firebox M270
CVE-2026-13384Same product: Watchguard Firebox M270
CVE-2025-14733Same product: Watchguard Firebox M270
CVE-2026-13383Same product: Watchguard Firebox M270
CVE-2026-13053Same product: Watchguard Firebox M270
CVE-2026-3342Same product: Watchguard Firebox M270

Affected Assets

watchguard
fireware
12.1 — 12.12.1 · 2025.1 — 2026.2.1

Mitigating Controls

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

IA-5 Authenticator Management good match

Authenticator management requires secure distribution and handling of credentials, structurally discouraging hard-coded values.

SC-12 Cryptographic Key Establishment and Management good match

Cryptographic key management mandates proper establishment and handling instead of embedding keys in code.

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.AA-01 partial match
prevents

PR.AA-01's credential/key-management processes can reduce the incentive to embed secrets but do not address or detect hard-coded values in source code, so the weakness remains fully possible.

PR.AA-02 none match
prevents

PR.AA-02 addresses human identity proofing and per-person credential issuance at enrollment; it has no bearing on whether developers embed static credentials in software.

PR.DS-01 none match
prevents

PR.DS-01 addresses encryption and integrity of stored data but never touches credential or key management practices, so it neither prevents hard-coded credentials nor removes any of their risk.

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.6.3 Information security awareness, education and training partial match
prevents

Education on secure configuration practices discourages technical staff from embedding or relying on hard-coded credentials in systems and applications.

A.8.24 Use of cryptography partial match
mitigates

Secure key-generation, distribution and storage procedures reduce the likelihood that hard-coded or default cryptographic keys will be introduced or left unprotected.

A.8.28 Secure coding partial match
prevents

Explicit prohibition of hard-coded passwords and unauthenticated external services stops credentials from being embedded directly in source code.

A.8.30 Outsourced development partial match
prevents

Contractual requirements for secure coding practices and evidence of testing make it less likely that hard-coded credentials will be introduced or remain undetected in delivered code.

A.5.16 Identity management none match
none

Requiring independent oversight and timely disabling of non-human identities makes it harder for hard-coded or long-lived credentials to remain exploitable.

A.5.17 Authentication information none match
none

Mandating immediate replacement of vendor-supplied default credentials eliminates the use of hard-coded or factory passwords that attackers can trivially obtain from documentation or firmware.

References