Netgear has patched several medium-severity flaws in some routers and range extenders, but a few older models will never get a fix.
Netgear has warned about security flaws in a small number of its routers and range extenders. Most supported models now have a patch. Several older ones do not, and Netgear says their owners should buy a newer device.
Netgear rated every flaw medium severity. Even so, it released new firmware, which is the software that runs the device, for each supported model. In general, the flaws let someone who is already on your home or office network run unauthorized commands on the router, or change its settings.
The details differ by model. One flaw only matters if the Block Sites feature is turned on, which blocks websites by domain name or keyword. Another lets an attacker view and change certain device details and admin settings. A third affects two range extenders and could let an attacker hijack an administrator's logged-in session.
Owners of certain Netgear routers and range extenders. The RAX5 4-Stream AX1600 WiFi 6 Router and the EX3700 AC750 WiFi Range Extender Essentials Edition have reached end of service, so their latest updates are the last ones they will get. Netgear advises owners of both to move to a newer device.
The CBR40 Orbi AC2200 Tri-band WiFi Cable Modem Router is in a worse spot. Its latest firmware will not fix the bug at all. One more router is in the same situation. Another flaw there needs the attacker to know the router's admin username and password.
An attacker must already be on your network, most likely by getting your Wi-Fi password. That makes this harder to pull off than an attack from across the internet. If your Wi-Fi password is strong and only trusted people have it, the risk is lower. It is not zero, so updating still makes sense.
The steps in the alert box above cover checking your model, updating the firmware and deciding whether to replace an old router. Your model number is on the router's label. Netgear's security advisory lists every affected model and links to each update.
Owners of supported models can fix this with one update. Owners of end-of-service models face a choice, because Netgear has said no further updates will come for them. Replacing the router is the only way to close the hole. The coverage does not say whether attacks are already happening, so treat the update as routine care rather than an emergency.
Check your Netgear model against the advisory, install the update if one exists, and replace the router if it is no longer supported.
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