CVE-2023-1389
This CVE is being exploited. Apply the vendor fix, or take the service off the internet until you can, then check your logs for attempts.
What it is
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.
Live exploitation on the huntback network (30 days)
Detection
Evidence
Confirmed exploited. Our decoys saw 64 exploitation attempts in the last 14 days; CISA added it to KEV 1291 days ago.
Last attempt. 272 attempts on our decoys, 64 in the last 14 days
First exploitation attempt on our decoys
Added to CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities
Published
Exploit code published (ExploitDB)
Nuclei detection template available
Observed: our own decoys saw it. Reported: CISA, the vendor or another named source says so. Weaponised: public exploit code or a scanner template exists. Methodology
Questions
Is CVE-2023-1389 being exploited in the wild?
Yes. The huntback decoy network captured 272 exploitation attempts from 14 distinct source IPs; the most recent was on 2026-11-12. It is also in the CISA KEV catalogue.
Can CVE-2023-1389 be detected on the network?
Yes. huntback carries a network signature for CVE-2023-1389, so attempts against a decoy are tagged in real time.
How huntback helps
Deploy a decoy that emulates Archer Ax21 and you will see every attempt at this CVE the moment it lands, with the full payload, the attacker's infrastructure, and any stage-2 loader. Then huntback can scan the attacker back.
Related
NVD record → Browse all CVEs → Live malware and C2 finds → Novel-attack discovery → Deploy a decoy →API
This record, with its evidence timeline, as JSON:
curl -H "X-API-Key: $HUNTBACK_KEY" https://app.huntback.io/api/v1/evidence/CVE-2023-1389