Executive brief
The Edimax GS-5008PL is a network switch used to manage data traffic and power devices in small-to-medium business environments. A security flaw allows unauthorized individuals to bypass the login screen and gain full administrative control of the device. Once inside, an attacker can change passwords, modify network configurations, or upload malicious firmware, potentially leading to a complete network compromise or service outage.
Technical details
An authentication bypass vulnerability exists in Edimax GS-5008PL switches due to an excessive reliance on global variables (CWE-1108) for session management. The firmware utilizes a global authentication flag that, once set by a legitimate user login, may grant administrative access to any other unauthenticated client on the network. An attacker can exploit this race condition or shared state to access the web management interface without providing credentials. Successful exploitation allows for complete device takeover, including the ability to modify system configurations, change administrative passwords, and perform unauthorized firmware updates. The vulnerability affects firmware versions up to and including 1.00.54.
Affected products
- Edimax GS-5008PL firmware 1.00.54 and prior
Timeline
- 2026-03-17: advisory: Initial disclosure by VulnCheck
References
- https://www.edimax.com/edimax/merchandise/merchandise_detail/data/edimax/us/smb_legacy_switches/gs-5008pl/
- https://www.edimax.com/edimax/merchandise/merchandise_list/data/edimax/us/smb_legacy_products/
- https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/edimax-gs-5008pl-global-authentication-state-across-all-clients