CVE-2023-44221
Confirmed PUBLISHEDImproper neutralization of special elements in the SMA100 SSL-VPN management interface allows a remote authenticated attacker with administrative...
397 days faster than CISA KEV
Recommended Action
Prioritize remediation. Validate affected assets and apply vendor fixes on an accelerated timeline.
At a Glance
Improper neutralization of special elements in the SMA100 SSL-VPN management interface allows a remote authenticated attacker with administrative privilege to inject arbitrary commands as a 'nobody' user, potentially leading to OS Command Injection Vulnerability.
- CVE Published
- Dec 05, 2023
- Exploitation Reported
- May 01, 2025
- CVSS
- 7.2 High
- EPSS
- 74.9%
Affected Versions
| Vendor | Product | Version | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| SonicWall |
SMA100
|
10.2.1.9-57sv and earlier versions |
Affected |
CVE References
- Vendor Advisory — psirt.global.sonicwall.com psirt.global.sonicwall.com · Vendor Advisory https://psirt.global.sonicwall.com/vuln-detail/SNWLID-2023-0018
Recommended Actions
- Prioritize remediation. Validate affected assets and apply vendor fixes on an accelerated timeline.
- Use the Pro API to automate enrichment, telemetry, and workflow delivery for VM, SOC, and CTI pipelines.
Known Exploited Vulnerability Sources
Catalogues that list this CVE as a known exploited vulnerability.
Per-source evidence links for KEV attestations are available through the KEVIntel Pro API.
Learn about Pro API access| Source | Added |
|---|---|
| TheHackerNews First | 2025-05-01 06:22 UTC |
| CISA | 2026-06-02 14:08 UTC |
No detection artifacts or sensor request patterns are available for this CVE yet.
Check back as sensor telemetry and scanner integrations are updated.
Virtual Patch
Compensating WAF rules to help reduce exposure to this CVE. Rule content and deployable vendor exports are available with KEVIntel Enterprise.
KEVIntel does not currently have a virtual patch for this CVE. When available, KEVIntel virtual patches ship as deployable ModSecurity, Cloudflare, and AWS WAF rules.
Enterprise feature. Virtual patch rule content and deployable vendor exports (ModSecurity, Cloudflare, AWS WAF) are available to KEVIntel Enterprise users.
CVSS Scores
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Exploitation Status
Exploited in the wild
Recorded 2025-05-01 00:00:00 UTC · CISA
Weaknesses (CWE)
-
Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')
Recent Mentions
Watchtower Labs · May 01, 2025
Another day, another edge device being targeted - it’s a typical Thursday!In today’s blog post, we’re excited to share our previously private analysis of the now exploited in-the-wild N-day vulnerabilities affecting SonicWall’s SMA100 appliance. Over the last few months, our client
All CISA Advisories · May 01, 2025
CISA has added two new vulnerabilities to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, based on evidence of active exploitation. CVE-2024-38475 Apache HTTP Server Improper Escaping of Output Vulnerability CVE-2023-44221 SonicWall SMA100 Appliances OS Command Injection Vulnerability These types of vulnerabilities are frequent attack vectors for malicious cyber actors and pose significant risks to the federal enterprise. Binding Operational Directive (BOD) 22-01: Reducing the Significant Risk of Known Exploited Vulnerabilities established the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog as a living list of known Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) that carry significant risk to the federal enterprise. BOD 22-01 requires Federal Civilian Executive Branch (FCEB) agencies to remediate identified vulnerabilities by the due date to protect FCEB networks against active threats. See the BOD 22-01 Fact Sheet for more information. Although BOD 22-01 only applies to FCEB agencies, CISA strongly urges all organizations to reduce their exposure to cyberattacks by prioritizing timely remediation of Catalog vulnerabilities as part of their vulnerability management practice. CISA will continue to add vulnerabilities to the catalog that meet the specified criteria.
TheHackerNews · May 01, 2025
SonicWall has revealed that two now-patched security flaws impacting its SMA100 Secure Mobile Access (SMA) appliances have been exploited in the wild. The vulnerabilities in question are listed below - CVE-2023-44221 (CVSS score: 7.2) - Improper neutralization of special elements in the SMA100 SSL-VPN management interface allows a remote authenticated attacker with administrative privilege to
Timeline
Key exploitation, disclosure, scanner coverage, and KEV attestation events for this CVE.
-
14:08 UTC about 2 months ago14:08 UTC · about 2 months ago
Added to CISA KEV
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog
-
06:22 UTC about 1 year ago06:22 UTC · about 1 year ago
Added to KEVIntel KEV Feed
High-confidence, third-party attested exploitation
-
20:10 UTC over 2 years ago20:10 UTC · over 2 years ago
CVE published
Vulnerability disclosed publicly
-
23:29 UTC almost 3 years ago23:29 UTC · almost 3 years ago
CVE ID reserved
Identifier reserved by the CNA
Automate This Intelligence with the Pro API
Confidence scoring, exploit status, sensor telemetry, PoCs, scanner integrations, mentions, and tags are available programmatically for VM, SOC, and CTI workflows.
Pro API Example
GET /api/v2/pro/kevs/CVE-2023-44221
{
"cve_id": "CVE-2023-44221",
"title": "Improper neutralization of special elements in the SMA100 SSL-VPN management ...",
"affected_vendor": "SonicWall",
"affected_product": "SMA100",
"affected_versions": [
{ "vendor": "...", "product": "...", "status": "affected", "display_label": "..." }
],
"confidence": "Confirmed",
"cvss_score": 7.2,
"epss_score": 0.74933,
"exploit_status": {
"exploited_in_the_wild": true,
"active_exploitation_observed": false
},
"sensor_telemetry": { "...": "Pro API fields" },
"proof_of_concepts": [ "..." ],
"scanner_integrations": [ "..." ]
}