# CVE-2023-36489: Command injection in TL-WR802N

> A network-adjacent attacker can execute arbitrary OS commands on TP-LINK routers, requiring firmware upgrades to mitigate.

- **Severity:** High 8.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 6 Sep 2023
- **Updated:** 26 Sep 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-qcp8-w359-4v36

## What is CVE-2023-36489?

CVE-2023-36489 is a high-severity command injection vulnerability in TP-LINK TL-WR802N, published on 6 Sep 2023. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Multiple TP-LINK products allow a network-adjacent unauthenticated attacker to execute arbitrary OS commands. Affected products/versions are as follows: TL-WR802N firmware versions prior to 'TL-WR802N(JP)_V4_221008', TL-WR841N firmware versions prior to 'TL-WR841N(JP)_V14_230506', and TL-WR902AC firmware versions prior to 'TL-WR902AC(JP)_V3_230506'.

Weakness: CWE-78 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-36489?

It affects 3 products.


Products: Tp-Link Tl-Wr802n Firmware, Tp-Link Tl-Wr841n Firmware, Tp-Link Tl-Wr902ac Firmware.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-36489?

No fix has been published for CVE-2023-36489 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2023-36489 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-36489 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in TP-LINK TL-WR802N

- [CVE-2021-4144](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-4144/): Command injection in TL-WR802N V4(JP) (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2026-3227](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-3227/): Authenticated Command Injection on TP-Link TL-WR802N, TL-WR841N and TL-WR840N (high 8.5)
- [CVE-2021-29302](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-29302/): Memory corruption in n/a (high 8.1)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-36489 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-36489 is a high-severity command injection vulnerability in TP-LINK TL-WR802N, published on 6 Sep 2023. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-36489 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: TP-LINK TL-WR802N. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-36489/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-36489/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-36489
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-36489
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-36489

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-36489/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.