Linksys E8450: stack buffer overflow in portal.cgi (CVE-2026-120283), no fix reported
Published 03/11/2026 02:08
Timeline
2 events over 11 h
- 02/11/2026 14:17ConfirmedBSI CERT-Bund (WID)+11 h
- 03/11/2026 02:08Published on WatchtowerPro CISO
In short
Linksys E8450 routers (firmware 1.2.00.360516) have a critical stack buffer overflow in the web interface (CVE-2026-120283) that can be attacked remotely. INCIBE-CERT and BSI CERT-Bund list it, and BSI marks it as unpatched. No fix is known, so limit access to the router's web interface.
How bad is it
Critical. An attacker who can reach the router's web interface over the network may be able to take over the router by overflowing memory, without logging in.
Confirmed by the vendor or a CERT - no exploitation reported yet.
Severity score
CVSS 4.0 from NVD, from vuldb.com, read 03/11/2026.
What an attacker needs
- Internet access to itEnough
- A loginNot needed
- A user to clickNo
- Special settingsNo
Red helps the attacker, blue holds them back, grey is not published yet.
If it works, an attacker can
- Read the data it holds
- Change or delete that data
- Take it offline
Type: memory corruption.
A score is the worst case for the flaw, not a verdict on any one system. How we score · ReconX customers see which of their own systems are affected.
Affected versions
- Linksys E8450, firmware 1.2.00.360516
- The flaw is in the strcpy function of /www/cgi-bin/portal.cgi; manipulating the argument hidden_timezone causes a stack-based buffer overflow (CWE-119).
What to do now
- No fixed firmware version is known yet. Check the Linksys support page for the E8450 regularly for a firmware release and install it as soon as it appears.
- Find out whether you use a Linksys E8450 and record its firmware version (the affected version is 1.2.00.360516).
- As general hardening (not vendor guidance), turn off remote or WAN management of the router's web interface and restrict LAN access to it to trusted admin hosts. These measures reduce exposure but do not make the router safe.
- If the router sits at the network edge and cannot be protected, plan to replace it.
ReconX customers see the full notice - and their own systems
Our customers are alerted at every phase. Until a patch exists, the ReconX agent watches their servers from the inside for anomalies, and our outside view - the attacker's view - shows which systems to fix first.
In ReconX: the full analysis, 5 open questions, followed up as sources answer and all 2 sources with their dates. And technology matching: which of your systems run Linksys router, at which version, fixed or not - and what each one needs.
Main sources
[NEU] [UNGEPATCHT] [kritisch] Linksys Router: Schwachstelle ermöglicht Erlangen von Administratorrechten CERT · CVE-2026-120283 Research