VulnerabilityPublished 10 Dec 2024Updated 11 Dec 2024

CVE-2024-50699: Insufficiently Protected Credentials

Source CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 8.0 High.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 13:47 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

8.0High

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.4% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 36% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Attack Vector: Adjacent
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: Low
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: High
Availability: High

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Adjacent: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack, but the attack is limited at the protocol level to a logically adjacent topology. This can mean an attack must be launched from the same shared physical (e.g., Bluetooth or IEEE 802.11) or logical (e.g., local IP subnet) network, or from within a secure or otherwise limited administrative domain (e.g., MPLS, secure VPN to an administrative network zone).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: Low: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide basic user capabilities that could normally affect only settings and files owned by a user. Alternatively, an attacker with Low privileges may have the ability to cause an impact only to non-sensitive resources.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: High: There is a total loss of integrity, or a complete loss of protection. For example, the attacker is able to modify any/all files protected by the impacted component. Alternatively, only some files can be modified, but malicious modification would present a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component.
Availability: High: There is total loss of availability, resulting in the attacker being able to fully deny access to resources in the impacted component; this loss is either sustained (while the attacker continues to deliver the attack) or persistent (the condition persists even after the attack has completed). Alternatively, the attacker has the ability to deny some availability, but the loss of availability presents a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component (e.g., the attacker cannot disrupt existing connections, but can prevent new connections; the attacker can repeatedly exploit a vulnerability that, in each instance of a successful attack, leaks a only small amount of memory, but after repeated exploitation causes a service to become completely unavailable).

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 10 Dec 2024
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

AI-suggested

Immediately change the default administrator credentials on all affected TP-Link TL-WR845N(UN) V4 routers to strong, unique passwords.
Restrict administrative access to the router by limiting management interfaces to trusted IP addresses or VLANs and disabling remote management if not required.
Segment the network to isolate critical systems from devices using these routers, reducing the attack surface.
Monitor network traffic for unusual activity that could indicate exploitation attempts, such as unexpected configuration changes or unauthorized access.
Regularly check TP-Link’s official channels for firmware updates or security advisories addressing this vulnerability and apply patches promptly when available.
Consider replacing affected devices with models that have stronger security postures if firmware updates are not forthcoming.
Educate users and administrators about the risks of default credentials and enforce policies to avoid their use in any network device.

Description

TP-Link TL-WR845N(UN)_V4_201214, TL-WR845N(UN)_V4_200909 and TL-WR845N(UN)_V4_190219 were discovered to contain weak default credentials for the Administrator account.

Impact

The exploitation of this vulnerability can lead to complete compromise of affected TP-Link TL-WR845N(UN) V4 routers. Attackers gaining administrative access can manipulate network traffic, steal sensitive data, inject malware, or cause denial of service by misconfiguring or disabling the device. This threatens the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of all network communications passing through the router. Organizations relying on these routers for critical network infrastructure, including small to medium enterprises, home offices, and possibly some larger deployments, face risks of data breaches, espionage, and operational disruption. The vulnerability’s ease of exploitation and high impact make it a significant threat to network security, especially in environments lacking strong network segmentation or monitoring. The absence of known exploits in the wild currently reduces immediate risk but does not diminish the urgency for remediation given the potential damage.

Summary

CVE-2024-50699 identifies a critical security weakness in TP-Link TL-WR845N(UN) V4 routers, specifically versions dated 2019-02-19, 2020-09-09, and 2020-12-14. The vulnerability stems from weak default administrator credentials embedded in the firmware, classified under CWE-522 (Insufficiently Protected Credentials). An attacker with access to the local network or via remote access if exposed could leverage these default credentials to authenticate as an administrator without needing to guess or brute force passwords. This grants full control over the router’s configuration, enabling actions such as intercepting or redirecting traffic, deploying malicious firmware, or disrupting network availability. The CVSS v3.1 vector (AV:A/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) indicates that the attack vector is adjacent network (e.g., Wi-Fi or LAN), requires low attack complexity, low privileges, no user interaction, and impacts confidentiality, integrity, and availability at a high level. Although no known exploits are currently reported in the wild, the vulnerability’s nature and severity make it a significant risk, especially in environments where these routers are deployed without additional network segmentation or security controls. No official patches or firmware updates have been linked yet, emphasizing the need for immediate mitigation through configuration changes and network controls.

CWE-522Insufficiently Protected Credentials (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessOWASP Top 10 A06:2025: Insecure Design (opens in a new tab)
The product transmits or stores authentication credentials, but it uses an insecure method that is susceptible to unauthorized interception and/or retrieval.
Architecture and Design
Use an appropriate security mechanism to protect the credentials.
Architecture and Design
Make appropriate use of cryptography to protect the credentials.
Implementation
Use industry standards to protect the credentials (e.g. LDAP, keystore, etc.).
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Secure Design Principles (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V2.10.3 (opens in a new tab)
V2.8.5 (opens in a new tab)
V2.8.4 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Session Sidejacking (opens in a new tab)
Signature Spoofing by Key Theft (opens in a new tab)
Password Recovery Exploitation (opens in a new tab)
Kerberoasting (opens in a new tab)
Modify Existing Service (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 27 Feb 2026, 22:42 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-522

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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