CVE-2023-1389
CVE-2023-1389 is a security flaw in TP-Link Archer AX21, routers for homes and small offices. Attackers can run their own code on TP-Link Archer AX21 from anywhere, without logging in. The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) added it to its catalog of flaws known to be used in attacks on 1 May 2023.[1]
TP-Link Archer AX21 is in things households have: home and small-office routers, so the fix matters at home as much as at work. TP-Link has published a fix or advice.
Description
CISA calls it an archer AX-21 command injection in TP-Link Archer AX21. In its words: “TP-Link Archer AX-21 contains a command injection vulnerability that allows for remote code execution.”[1]
The CVE record adds: “TP-Link Archer AX21 (AX1800) firmware versions before 1.1.4 Build 20230219 contained a command injection vulnerability in the country form of the /cgi-bin/luci;stok=/locale endpoint on the web management interface. Specifically, the country parameter of the write operation was not sanitized before being used in a call to popen(), allowing an unauthenticated attacker to inject commands, which would be run as root, with a simple POST request.”[2]
The underlying weakness is command injection (CWE-77), in MITRE’s list of common software weaknesses.
It scores 8.8 out of 10 on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System, which rates it high, scored by NVD using CVSS 3.1.[2]
Affected versions
NVD’s record doesn’t list version ranges for it; TP-Link’s advisory has them[3]. CISA names the product as TP-Link Archer AX21.
Every device with TP-Link Archer AX21 needs the update.
Exploitation
CISA added it to its catalog of known exploited vulnerabilities on 1 May 2023, 47 days after it was made public. CISA lists a flaw only when it has reliable evidence of it being exploited, and gave US federal agencies until 22 May 2023 to fix it.[1]
FIRST’s Exploit Prediction Scoring System, which estimates how likely a flaw is to be used in attacks in the next 30 days from what it sees across the internet, puts it at over 99%. That’s in the top 1% of the flaws it scores.[4]
CISA assesses it as automatable: attackers can run it against many targets at once.
CISA doesn’t say who was attacked, or how.
Fix
TP-Link has published a fix or advice.[3] CISA’s required action: “Apply updates per vendor instructions.”[1]
- Update TP-Link Archer AX21 now.Open the router’s app, or its admin page in a browser, and look for a firmware update. Then turn on automatic updates, so the next fix arrives on its own.
- If the maker has stopped updating it, replace it.Routers stop getting fixes after a few years, and attackers keep a list of the ones that did. If there’s no newer firmware, it won’t be fixed.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| The flaw is made public in the National Vulnerability Database, with a severity score of 8.8.[2] | |
| CISA adds it to its catalog of flaws known to be used in attacks.[1] | |
| CISA’s deadline for US government agencies to fix it.[1] | |
| FIRST puts the odds of it being used in attacks in the next 30 days at over 99%.[4] |
See also
Other TP-Link flaws
- CVE-2025-9377, TP-Link Multiple Routers: archer C7(EU) and TL-WR841N/ND(MS) OS command injection ·
- CVE-2023-50224, TP-Link TL-WR841N: authentication bypass by spoofing ·
- CVE-2020-24363, TP-Link TL-WA855RE: missing authentication for critical function ·
- CVE-2023-33538, TP-Link Multiple Routers: command injection ·
- CVE-2015-3035, TP-Link Multiple Archer Devices: directory traversal ·
Other command injection flaws
- CVE-2026-105134, AhsayCBS: command injection ·
- CVE-2026-96951, Microsoft Windows: command injection ·
- CVE-2016-3081, Apache Struts: command injection ·
- CVE-2026-8037, Progress LoadMaster: command injection ·
- CVE-2025-29635, D-Link DIR-823X: command injection ·
Added the same day
- CVE-2023-21839, Oracle WebLogic Server: unspecified ·
- CVE-2021-45046, Apache Log4j2: deserialization of untrusted data ·
Every TP-Link flaw on CISA’s list · Everything added in May 2023
References
- ^ Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. “TP-Link Archer AX-21 Command Injection Vulnerability”. Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, added 1 May 2023.
- ^ National Institute of Standards and Technology. “CVE-2023-1389 Detail”. National Vulnerability Database, published 15 Mar 2023.
- ^ TP-Link. Advisories and fixes: tp-link.com.
- ^ FIRST. “Exploit Prediction Scoring System”. EPSS 1.000, percentile 100.0, 31 Oct 2026.
- CVE Program. “CVE-2023-1389”. The official CVE record.
This article is built from CISA’s catalog (version 2026.10.30), NVD’s record and FIRST’s scores, kept in HARD’s database and checked every morning. The plain English is HARD’s.