CRITICAL

CVE-2023-40146

CVSS v3

9.8

CRITICAL

EPSS Score

1.4 %

exploit probability, as of 2026-10-19

CISA KEV

known exploited

Exploitation

—

SSVC status

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Affected and fixed versions

Neither OSV.dev nor the vendor advisories we read list affected versions for CVE-2023-40146 yet.

Full record on NVD

Description

A privilege escalation vulnerability exists in the /bin/login functionality of Peplink Smart Reader v1.2.0 (in QEMU). A specially crafted command line argument can lead to a limited-shell escape and elevated capabilities. An attacker can authenticate with hard-coded credentials and execute unblocked default busybox functionality to trigger this vulnerability.

Technical details

Published: 2024-04-17

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2023-40146?

Is CVE-2023-40146 actively exploited?

Active exploitation of CVE-2023-40146 has not been confirmed. Its EPSS score was 1.4% on 2026-10-19, the estimated probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What is the CVSS score for CVE-2023-40146?

CVE-2023-40146 has a CVSS v3 base score of 9.8 (CRITICAL severity).

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