Security News > 2022 > January > Attackers now actively targeting critical SonicWall RCE bug

Successful exploitation can let remote unauthenticated attackers execute code as the 'nobody' user in compromised SonicWall appliances.
"There are no temporary mitigations. SonicWall urges impacted customers to implement applicable patches as soon as possible," the company said in December after releasing CVE-2021-20038 security updates adding that it found no evidence the bug was exploited in the wild at the time.
While these ongoing attacks haven't yet been successful, SonicWall customers are advised to patch their SMA 100 appliances to block hacking attempts.
SonicWall SMA 100 appliances have been targeted in multiple campaigns since the start of 2021, including in attacks coordinated by ransomware gangs.
In July, SonicWall warned of the increased risk of ransomware attacks targeting unpatched end-of-life SMA 100 series and Secure Remote Access products.
CrowdStrike, Coveware security researchers, and CISA warned that HelloKitty ransomware operators were already targeting SonicWall appliances.
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Related Vulnerability
DATE | CVE | VULNERABILITY TITLE | RISK |
---|---|---|---|
2021-12-08 | CVE-2021-20038 | Out-of-bounds Write vulnerability in Sonicwall products A Stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability in SMA100 Apache httpd server's mod_cgi module environment variables allows a remote unauthenticated attacker to potentially execute code as a 'nobody' user in the appliance. | 9.8 |