Vulnerability Note VU#212088

Alcatel ADSL modems contain a null default password

Overview

The San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC) has recently discovered several vulnerabilities in the Alcatel Speed Touch line of Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) modems. These vulnerabilities are the result of weak authentication and access control policies and result in one or more of the following impacts: unauthorized access, unauthorized monitoring, information leakage, denial of service, and permanent disability of affected devices.

The SDSC has published additional information regarding these vulnerabilities at http://security.sdsc.edu/self-help/alcatel/.

I. Description

The Alcatel Speed Touch ADSL modem ships with a null default password, permitting unauthenticated access via TELNET, HTTP, and FTP. As with the EXPERT account vulnerability (VU#243592), the device must have an externally accessible IP address.

II. Impact

Unless the user or internet service provider changes the default password of an affected device, a remote attacker can access the modem via TELNET, HTTP, or FTP. In the case of TELNET and HTTP, this vulnerability grants the attacker read and write access to device configuration. For FTP, this vulnerability allows the attacker to browse the file structure of the affected device.

III. Solution

Set a password for your ADSL modem

Because the Alcatel ADSL modems ship without a password by default, an attacker may be able to gain access if this password has not been set. Users are encouraged to set a password when the device is first configured.

Systems Affected

Vendor	Status	Date Updated
Alcatel	Vulnerable	10-Apr-2001

References

http://security.sdsc.edu/self-help/alcatel/
http://www.alcatel.com/consumer/dsl/security.htm

Credit

The CERT Coordination Center would like to thank Tom Perrine and Tsutomu Shimomura of the San Diego Supercomputer Center for notifying us about this problem and their help in constructing this advisory.

This document is based on research by the SDSC and was written by Cory Cohen and Jeffrey P. Lanza.

Other Information

Date Public	04/10/2001
Date First Published	04/10/2001 07:26:01 PM
Date Last Updated	04/11/2001
CERT Advisory	CA-2001-08
CVE Name
US-CERT Technical Alerts
Metric	42.00
Document Revision	12

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