Threats / Cisco / CVE-2022-20708
CVE-2022-20708
· EUVD no mirror located
· GCVE no mirror located
Verified 2026-06-22
Cisco Small Business RV160, RV260, RV340, and RV345 Series R vulnerability
A stack-based buffer overflow in Cisco Small Business RV routers enables unauthenticated remote code execution, privilege escalation, and authentication bypass with active exploitation observed.
Verdict
Today item — known-exploited.
Critical remote code execution vulnerability affecting multiple Cisco Small Business router models. Stack buffer overflow allows attackers to execute arbitrary code, escalate privileges, and bypass security controls without authentication. Exploitation confirmed in the wild.
01
Is it exploitable?
— the evidence, ranked above the scoreReported exploitation
1 independent public report of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2022-03-03).
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.13961 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
Affected: Cisco, Small Business RV160, RV260, RV340, and RV345 Series Routers. Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-121 Stack-based Buffer Overflow — weakness family: Memory safety.CWE assignment from the public NVD record; the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
02
Who’s exploiting it?
— attribution turns risk into urgencyAttribution not established
No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.
03
Why it matters
— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board1
Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1
Attacker
I send a crafted network request to the router's vulnerable interface to trigger a stack buffer overflow.
Business
Attacker gains initial code execution on the network perimeter device with potential for lateral movement.
2
Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2
Attacker
I exploit the overflow to elevate my privileges from an unprivileged context to administrative level.
Business
Attacker obtains full control of router configuration, routing tables, and network traffic inspection capabilities.
3
Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3
Attacker
I bypass authentication mechanisms to access protected administrative functions without valid credentials.
Business
Security controls designed to restrict access are rendered ineffective, enabling unauthorized configuration changes.
4
Data at risk — exfiltration narrative 4
Attacker
I load and execute unsigned firmware or malicious software on the compromised router.
Business
Attacker establishes persistent presence on network infrastructure, potentially intercepting or redirecting traffic.
5
Lights out — disruption & extortion narrative 5
Attacker
I trigger a denial of service condition by crashing the router or exhausting its resources.
Business
Network connectivity is disrupted, affecting all devices dependent on the router for internet access.
04
What to do
— defensible action- Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05