Vulnerability record · CVE-2020-10173 · published 5 March 2020
CVE-2020-10173: Comtrend VR-3033 router authenticated command injection via ping/traceroute CGI
Comtrend · Vr 3033 Firmware
Comtrend VR-3033 devices (firmware DE11-416SSG-C01_R02.A2pvI042j1.d26m) contain multiple authenticated OS command injection flaws in the ping and traceroute diagnostic pages. Shell metacharacters supplied in the pingIpAddress parameter to ping.cgi are passed to the underlying shell, letting a logged-in user run arbitrary commands on the device. Because the router sits at the network edge, compromise exposes the local network and the device's configuration.
Description
Comtrend VR-3033 DE11-416SSG-C01_R02.A2pvI042j1.d26m devices have Multiple Authenticated Command Injection vulnerabilities via the ping and traceroute diagnostic pages, as demonstrated by shell metacharacters in the pingIpAddress parameter to ping.cgi.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Automated analysis
high priorityNetwork-reachable authenticated command injection with a public exploit and very high EPSS, but it requires valid credentials and no KEV listing or ransomware use is documented.
What it is
Comtrend VR-3033 devices (firmware DE11-416SSG-C01_R02.A2pvI042j1.d26m) contain multiple authenticated OS command injection flaws in the ping and traceroute diagnostic pages. Shell metacharacters supplied in the pingIpAddress parameter to ping.cgi are passed to the underlying shell, letting a logged-in user run arbitrary commands on the device. Because the router sits at the network edge, compromise exposes the local network and the device's configuration.
Impact
An attacker with valid credentials gains arbitrary command execution as the web service's OS user, allowing configuration theft, traffic interception or redirection, and use of the device as a pivot into the internal network.
Attack surface
Reachable over the network through the device's web management interface (AV:N) via the ping.cgi and traceroute diagnostic pages; the vector requires low privileges (PR:L), meaning a valid authenticated session, and no user interaction (UI:N).
Exploitation
A public Exploit-DB proof-of-concept (EDB-48142) exists, and EPSS is very high at 0.771 (99.5th percentile), though the CVE is not listed in CISA KEV and no ransomware use is documented.
What to do
- Apply the vendor's fixed firmware for the VR-3033 if available; if no patch exists, replace or retire the device.
- Restrict access to the web management interface to trusted management networks and disable remote/WAN administration.
- Change default and weak credentials, enforce unique strong admin passwords, and limit who holds them.
- Isolate the router on a segmented management VLAN and monitor outbound traffic from it.
- If diagnostics are not needed, block or disable access to ping.cgi and traceroute pages at the perimeter.
Detection
- Inspect HTTP requests to ping.cgi and traceroute endpoints for shell metacharacters (;, |, &, $(), backticks) in pingIpAddress and similar parameters.
- Alert on unexpected outbound connections or DNS lookups originating from the router's management IP.
- Monitor router logs for diagnostic page access outside normal admin activity and for repeated authentication to the web UI.
- Watch for configuration changes or new admin accounts on the device that were not made through approved change windows.
This assessment is produced automatically and is not human-reviewed. Verify against the vendor advisory before acting on it.
Affected products
1 vulnerable configurations from NVD's CPE data, grouped by vendor and product.
References
| Link | Tags |
|---|---|
| https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/48142 | ExploitThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry |
| https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/48142 | ExploitThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry |
Track CVE-2020-10173 inside VULONE
Watch it alongside the ransomware crews, C2 infrastructure and forum chatter that reference it, query it through the API and pull it into your SIEM over TAXII.
Related vulnerabilities
Same products first, then exploited flaws of the same weakness class.
Source: NIST National Vulnerability Database (record CVE-2020-10173), CISA KEV, FIRST EPSS (scores of 2026-09-25). This page is refreshed as NVD updates the record.