Taiwan-based networking equipment manufacturer D-Link has released firmware updates for several of its DIR model routers to address a serious vulnerability discovered by a researcher.
The flaw, identified by Daniel Romero, is a stack-based buffer overflow in a function responsible for validating session cookies. The affected function is used by a service that could be exposed to the WAN network on port 8181. A remote or a local attacker may be able to exploit the vulnerability for arbitrary code execution.
The security hole, tracked as CVE-2016-5681, has been confirmed to impact the following D-Link routers: DIR-850L B1, DIR-822 A1, DIR-823 A1, DIR-895L A1, DIR-890L A1, DIR-885L A1, DIR-880L A1, DIR-868L B1, DIR-868L C1, DIR-817L(W) and DIR-818L(W).
The CERT Coordination Center (CERT/CC) has assigned this vulnerability a CVSS score of 9.3, which puts it in the “critical impact” category.
D-Link said in an advisory that it has released firmware updates for most of the affected router models, except DIR-817 Rev. Ax and DIR-818L Rev. Bx. Patches for these devices will be made available by the end of August.
Since D-Link home and small business routers are highly popular, they are often analyzed by security researchers. The company released firmware updates for several of its products last year, but not all vulnerabilities were patched properly on the first try.
Routers are not the only products found to be vulnerable to hacker attacks. In June, IoT security startup Senrio revealed that it had found a serious flaw in a popular D-Link Wi-Fi camera. After a detailed analysis of the issue, the vendor discovered that the bug affects more than 120 of its products, including access points, modems, routers, connected home products and storage solutions.
Related Reading: Flaws in Ruckus Access Points Expose Organizations to Attacks
Related Reading: D-Link Accidentally Publishes Private Keys Online

Eduard Kovacs (@EduardKovacs) is a contributing editor at SecurityWeek. He worked as a high school IT teacher for two years before starting a career in journalism as Softpedia’s security news reporter. Eduard holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial informatics and a master’s degree in computer techniques applied in electrical engineering.
More from Eduard Kovacs
- High-Severity Privilege Escalation Vulnerability Patched in VMware Workstation
- GoAnywhere MFT Users Warned of Zero-Day Exploit
- UK Car Retailer Arnold Clark Hit by Ransomware
- EV Charging Management System Vulnerabilities Allow Disruption, Energy Theft
- Unpatched Econolite Traffic Controller Vulnerabilities Allow Remote Hacking
- Google Fi Data Breach Reportedly Led to SIM Swapping
- Microsoft’s Verified Publisher Status Abused in Email Theft Campaign
- British Retailer JD Sports Discloses Data Breach Affecting 10 Million Customers
Latest News
- Fraudulent “CryptoRom” Apps Slip Through Apple and Google App Store Review Process
- US Downs Chinese Balloon Off Carolina Coast
- Microsoft: Iran Unit Behind Charlie Hebdo Hack-and-Leak Op
- Feds Say Cyberattack Caused Suicide Helpline’s Outage
- Big China Spy Balloon Moving East Over US, Pentagon Says
- Former Ubiquiti Employee Who Posed as Hacker Pleads Guilty
- Cyber Insights 2023: Venture Capital
- Atlassian Warns of Critical Jira Service Management Vulnerability
