CVE-2017-20204Public exploitNetwork attack vector

Root shell access via computable Telnet challenge

Published Oct 15, 2025 · Updated Oct 15, 2025

Authentication bypass in DBLTek GoIP devices allows remote attackers to obtain a root shell through the Telnet administrative interface. The /sbin/login binary accepts the undocumented dbladm account and derives its expected MD5-based response entirely from the issued challenge, so no secret is required. Telnet access to the device is the only gate; successful authentication grants root-level command execution and arbitrary control of the gateway.

CVSS severity9.3
Critical
EPSS probability0.69%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Book a demo

Summary

What happened

Authentication bypass in DBLTek GoIP devices allows remote attackers to obtain a root shell through the Telnet administrative interface. The /sbin/login binary accepts the undocumented dbladm account and derives its expected MD5-based response entirely from the issued challenge, so no secret is required. Telnet access to the device is the only gate; successful authentication grants root-level command execution and arbitrary control of the gateway.

The record

CVE
CVE-2017-20204
Published
Oct 15, 2025
Updated
Oct 15, 2025
Vendor
DBL Technology Limited
Product
GoIP
Classifications
CWE-1242, T1190
Attack vector
network
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Oct 15, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Oct 15, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=*

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

DBL Technology Limited · GoIPversion=*

Published CVSS scores

9.3VulnCheckCVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-1242Inclusion of Undocumented Features or Chicken Bits
T1190Exploit Public-Facing Application

Public exploit references

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Book a demo