Cybersecurity researchers have confirmed that the exploitation of D-Link NAS devices has been ongoing. Recently it was found to contain a critical flaw, for which the manufacturer is no longer offering support on such devices.
Critical Flaw and Discontinued Support
A critical security flaw, rated 9.2 on the severity scale, was found in various editions of D-Link NAS devices. This flaw may allow attackers to remotely execute malevolent commands that would place sensitive data stored on these systems at risk. However, D-Link announced that it will not release a patch for this issue as these devices have reached EOL status. Users are instead advised to update to newer products in order to continue protection.
Tens of Thousands of Devices Vulnerable
Researchers have discovered more than 60,000 vulnerable devices worldwide. The affected models include DNS-320 Version 1.00, DNS-320LW Version 1.01.0914.2012, DNS-325 Versions 1.01 and 1.02, and DNS-340L Version 1.08. While the above number of possible exploited devices is very large, so far only around 1,100 instances of exploitation were seen, according to a threat monitoring service called Shadowserver.
Active Exploitation Starts
Exploitation attempts for this vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2024-10914, were first sighted on November 12. According to the researchers at Shadowserver, attackers are taking advantage of a command injection vulnerability on the "/cgi-bin/account_mgr.cgi" endpoint of the affected devices. Though the exploitation of this flaw is relatively complex, a public exploit available does increase the risk for its users.
Shadowserver makes a big point of pulling these types of devices off the internet as their EOL status signifies D-Link will not be putting out any further updates or releases on these devices.
Why NAS Devices Are Attractive
For centralizing data storage, NAS devices make it possible for quite a few users and devices to access and share files, let alone back them up. They are highly used in homes and businesses for reliability, ease of use, and scalability. However, due to their nature as data hubs, they are great targets for cybercriminals-these criminals typically try to steal, encrypt, or delete valuable information, and one of the most commonly used tools is through ransomware attacks.
What Users Should Do
Thereby, the owners of affected D-Link NAS devices are advised to replace them with the supported versions. Disconnecting the affected devices from the internet would be one of the immediate steps to reduce the exposure.
Furthermore, users should keep their systems up to date and implement robust security measures in place for protecting data. For this reason, cyber threats evolve very fast, and only a vigilant user can save the sensitive information.
