A Deep Dive Into Attempted Exploitation of CVE-2023
Mirai-like botnet scans exploit TP-Link EOL router flaw CVE-2023-33538 after CISA KEV addition, though observed exploit code is flawed.
Unit 42 observed large-scale automated scans attempting to exploit CVE-2023-33538 in end-of-life TP-Link TL-WR940N, TL-WR740N and TL-WR841N routers after CISA added the flaw to its KEV catalog in June 2025. HTTP GET requests inject commands via the ssid1 parameter at the /userRpm/WlanNetworkRpm endpoint to download and execute an arm7 ELF binary, a Mirai variant related to the Condi IoT botnet. Firmware emulation and reverse engineering showed the observed exploits are flawed and would fail, but the underlying vulnerability is real and successful exploitation requires authentication to the router's web interface. TP-Link confirmed the devices are end-of-life with no patches available and recommends replacing units and eliminating default credentials.
Hackers Exploit FortiGate SSL-VPN Vulnerability to Attack Broadband Provider
Exposed attacker staging server reveals intrusion of Thai broadband provider 3BB via actively exploited FortiGate SSL-VPN flaw CVE-2024-21762.
Hunt.io found an open directory on server 92.63.180[.]133 holding 298 files detailing an intrusion into Triple T Broadband's 3BB brand, starting from a FortiGate 60F SSL-VPN at mail.3bb.co[.]th:10443. The actor weaponized CVE-2024-21762 (CVSS 9.8, KEV-listed since February 2024) using heap spraying and a ROP chain to gain a reverse shell. Post-exploitation included MeshCentral root-level persistence via www.ayuthayatech[.]com, Dirty COW/PwnKit privilege escalation, credential harvesting, SSH spraying against 55+ internal addresses, and log-deleting cleanup scripts; a stolen OpenVPN certificate and key from Triple T's PKI may still be valid.
Exploits in the Wild for Citrix ADC and Citrix Gateway Directory Traversal Vulnerability CVE-2019
Unit 42 confirmed in-the-wild exploitation of CVE-2019-19781, a critical Citrix ADC/Gateway directory traversal flaw enabling unauthenticated file access and RCE.
CVE-2019-19781, a CVSS 9.8 directory traversal vulnerability, affects all supported versions of Citrix ADC and Citrix Gateway. Unit 42 captured multiple exploitation attempts in the wild and identified scanning activity from roughly 700 Shodan-exposed hosts. The flaw stems from improper pathname handling in Apache, allowing unauthenticated attackers to read sensitive files like smb.conf or achieve remote code execution via crafted XML. Palo Alto Networks released Threat Prevention signatures 57497 and 57570 on January 7, 2020, while Citrix published advisories CTX267027 and CTX267679 with responder policy mitigations pending a late-January patch.
Hackers target exposed Vite dev servers to steal AWS, Azure secrets
Mass scanning campaign exploits CVE-2026-39364 in exposed Vite dev servers to steal AWS, Azure, and Terraform credentials.
F5 honeypots detected over 800 attacks and roughly 32,000 events in a month against internet-exposed Vite development servers, abusing CVE-2026-39364 (file access control bypass in Vite 7.1.0-7.3.2 and 8.x before 8.0.5) via parameters like ?raw and ?import&raw. Attackers used extensive wordlists to harvest .env files, AWS/Azure credentials, Terraform state, and /proc/self/environ, with double-encoded traversal to bypass WAFs. The same IPs also leveraged older Vite flaws CVE-2025-30208, actively-exploited CVE-2025-31125, and CVE-2024-45811, primarily from US, Belgium, and Netherlands using Google Cloud ranges.
Exposed Vite servers are being probed for AWS and Azure credentials
F5 honeypots logged 32,000+ probes against Vite file-access bypass CVE-2026-39364, hunting AWS and Azure credentials on exposed dev servers.
F5 Labs reported 32,000+ scan attempts (807 attack sessions) against exposed Vite servers in August, up from 1,732 attempts over the prior three months. Attackers exploited CVE-2026-39364 (CVSS 8.2), which bypasses Vite's server.fs.deny protection via parameters like ?raw and ?import&raw, affecting Vite 7.1.0 to before 7.3.2 and Vite 8 before 8.0.5. Scanners cycled wordlists for environment files, AWS keys, Azure tokens and IaC state files, also combining older Vite CVEs (2025-30208, 2025-31125, 2024-45811) and probing a Next.js middleware bypass. Only CVE-2025-31125 is currently in CISA's KEV catalog.
Active exploitation of Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center vulnerabilities
Cisco Talos reports in-the-wild exploitation of critical FMC flaw CVE-2026-20079 by three clusters including a Sandworm-linked APT and Qilin ransomware affiliates.
Cisco Talos is tracking active exploitation of CVE-2026-20079 (CVSS 10.0), an authentication bypass in Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center that lets unauthenticated remote attackers execute scripts and obtain root access, and CVE-2026-20316 (CVSS 5.3), which permits low-privileged logins and can be chained for privilege escalation. Talos identified three post-compromise clusters: UAT-12197 deploying JSP web shells and a JAR command executor for credential theft; UAT-11823, an APT overlapping with Sandworm, deploying a Netcat reverse shell and Cyclops Blink malware; and UAT-11988, assessed as a ransomware operator with TTPs consistent with Qilin affiliates. Hotfixes are available, with a comprehensive hardening release due the week of September 14, 2026.
Another Apache Log4j Vulnerability Is Actively Exploited in the Wild (CVE-2021
Apache Log4j 2 RCE CVE-2021-44228 is actively exploited via crafted JNDI lookups; Palo Alto Unit 42 urges upgrading to Log4j 2.17.1.
Unit 42 details CVE-2021-44228, an easily exploited remote code execution flaw in Apache Log4j 2 where attacker-supplied JNDI lookups in logged user input cause payload download and execution. Massive internet-wide scanning for unpatched systems has begun, with observed follow-on activity including information stealing, Cobalt Strike delivery, and coinmining. The recommended fix is Log4j 2.17.1, which also patches CVE-2021-45046, CVE-2021-45105, and CVE-2021-44832. Widely used Java software including Apache Struts, Solr, Druid, Flink, ElasticSearch, and Spring Boot is affected.