QNAP Network-Attached Storage (NAS): code execution flaw under attack

What is affected

QNAP Network-Attached Storage (NAS) is the kind of equipment many homes and small offices run for years without touching: a router, camera or storage box. Attackers scan the internet for exposed units, and a hijacked one can spy on traffic or be enrolled in a botnet without any visible sign.

QNAP NAS devices contain a command injection vulnerability which could allow attackers to perform remote code execution.

What an attacker can do

This is a code execution flaw. It lets an attacker run their own commands or programs on the affected system. In practice that usually means taking it over: installing malware, stealing data or using it to reach other devices on the same network.

How it is reached

Over the internet or network

Access the attacker needs

No account needed

Does the victim have to do something?

No, works without the victim doing anything

What to do

1. Check whether you own this device: look at the label on your router, camera or NAS, or open its admin page and note the model and firmware version.
2. Install the latest firmware from the manufacturer's support page or the device's own update menu.
3. If the manufacturer no longer releases updates for the model, replace it. An end-of-life device with an exploited flaw cannot be made safe.
4. Turn off remote administration from the internet unless you truly need it, and change the default admin password.

Apply updates per vendor instructions.

How urgent is it

CISA added this vulnerability to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue on April 11, 2022, which means there is reliable evidence of attacks in the wild. US federal agencies must fix it by May 2, 2022, a deadline that has already passed. That deadline does not bind anyone else, but it shows how seriously the agency rates it.

The EPSS model estimates a 34% probability that this flaw will be exploited somewhere in the next 30 days. That is higher than 98% of all scored vulnerabilities.

Its CVSS severity score is 9.8 out of 10 (critical), as recorded in the US National Vulnerability Database.

Technical description

A command injection vulnerability has been reported to affect QTS and QuTS hero. If exploited, this vulnerability allows attackers to execute arbitrary commands in a compromised application. We have already fixed this vulnerability in the following versions: QTS 4.5.2.1566 Build 20210202 and later QTS 4.5.1.1495 Build 20201123 and later QTS 4.3.6.1620 Build 20210322 and later QTS 4.3.4.1632 Build 20210324 and later QTS 4.3.3.1624 Build 20210416 and later QTS 4.2.6 Build 20210327 and later QuTS hero h4.5.1.1491 build 20201119 and later