ASUS Live Update: vulnerability flaw under attack

What is affected

ASUS Live Update 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.

ASUS Live Update contains an embedded malicious code vulnerability client were distributed with unauthorized modifications introduced through a supply chain compromise. The modified builds could cause devices meeting specific targeting conditions to perform unintended actions. The impacted product could be end-of-life (EoL) and/or end-of-service (EoS). Users should discontinue product utilization.

What an attacker can do

This is a vulnerability flaw. It lets an attacker misuse the product in a way its maker did not intend. CISA lists it because attackers are confirmed to be using it against real systems.

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 mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

Vendor advisories and fixes

• asus.comwww.asus.com/support/faq/1018727/

How urgent is it

CISA added this vulnerability to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue on December 17, 2025, which means there is reliable evidence of attacks in the wild. US federal agencies must fix it by January 7, 2026, 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 1.2% probability that this flaw will be exploited somewhere in the next 30 days. That is higher than 67% of all scored vulnerabilities.

Its CVSS severity score is 9.3 out of 10 (critical), as recorded in the US National Vulnerability Database.

Technical description

"UNSUPPORTED WHEN ASSIGNED" Certain versions of the ASUS Live Update client were distributed with unauthorized modifications introduced through a supply chain compromise. The modified builds could cause devices meeting specific targeting conditions to perform unintended actions. Only devices that met these conditions and installed the compromised versions were affected. The Live Update client has already reached End-of-Support (EOS) in October 2021, and no currently supported devices or products are affected by this issue.