External risk intelligence

GatesAir Flexiva Fax 150W Privilege Escalation via LDAP SMTP Credentials

CVE advisorySeverity: CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8)

CVE-2023-36082

The affected product is an FM transmitter/exiter, which often involves web-based management interfaces or service portals intended for remote configuration and monitoring. These devices are frequently deployed as network-accessible appliances, making their administrative services reachable in common deployment scenarios.

Gatesair Flexiva Fax 150w Firmware

Halo Surface Signal: 4 out of 5 — likely to be public-facing.

External exposure likelihood

Horizon Alert

Summary of the vulnerability and why it matters

This vulnerability impacts GatesAir Flexiva FM transmitter equipment, potentially allowing unauthorized remote access and privilege escalation by exploiting exposed credentials. The primary concern is to confirm if this specific type of broadcast infrastructure is in use and assess any exposure.

Unauthenticated attackers can gain control remotely.
Important for broadcast infrastructure integrity.
Confirm relevance and potential exposure.

Attack Path

How an attacker could exploit the issue

Attackers can remotely gain elevated privileges on the GatesAIr Flexiva FM Transmitter/Exiter by exploiting a vulnerability that exposes LDAP and SMTP credentials. This means an attacker could potentially access sensitive information or control the device without needing any prior access or authentication.

No authentication required to attack.
Exploits exposed credentials.
High risk of unauthorized access.

Live Threat

Current exploitation, exposure, and threat context

A remote attacker could leverage this vulnerability to gain elevated privileges by exploiting how the system handles LDAP and SMTP credentials. This could affect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the affected system when accessed remotely without authentication.

System credentials and access.
Via network exposure of services.
Unauthorized system control.

Operational Fix

Recommended remediation, mitigation, and detection steps

This critical vulnerability, stemming from how the affected FM transmitter/exiter handles LDAP and SMTP credentials, requires immediate attention from the teams responsible for managing network infrastructure and communication systems. The first practical step is to pinpoint all instances of this technology within your environment, determine their network exposure and business criticality, identify the accountable system owners, and then prioritize remediation efforts based on risk.

Infrastructure and Network Owners
Verify network exposure and criticality.
Plan phased remediation and vendor coordination.

Supplementary metadata

CVSS vector

Validate whether this threat affects your internet-facing exposure.

Halo Threat Intelligence helps prioritize remediation with Halo Surface Signal and H/A/L/O context. Start exposure validation with a free external attack surface trial.

Free EASM Trial See How Signal Works

Frequently asked questions

What is the GatesAir Flexiva Fax 150W?

It is a specialized FM transmitter and exiter device used in professional broadcasting. These units manage the signal generation and transmission process for radio stations, often relying on integrated web-based management interfaces or service portals to allow engineers to configure and monitor broadcast output remotely over a network.

What does CVE-2023-36082 mean?

This vulnerability involves a weakness classified as CWE-522, which relates to insufficiently protected credentials. In this specific case, the device fails to properly secure LDAP and SMTP authentication information. Because of this flaw, the system inadvertently makes these sensitive credentials available to unauthorized parties, which can lead to a full compromise of the device's administrative functions.

How can an attacker trigger this vulnerability?

An attacker can exploit this remotely over the network without needing any prior user account or authentication. It is important to note that the vulnerability is tied to the way the device handles internal credential storage; it does not require a user to perform any specific action, such as clicking a link or logging in, to trigger the exposure.

Is my device at risk based on Halo Surface Signal?

Halo Surface Signal indicates a high likelihood of risk because these transmitters are frequently deployed as network-accessible appliances. If your device is connected to the internet or accessible from outside your local management network, it is considered internet-facing, which significantly increases the risk that an unauthorized actor could reach the management services and exploit the credential vulnerability.

What should I do if I manage this equipment?

Your priority is to audit your environment to identify all active instances of this transmitter. Once located, verify the current network configuration to determine if management interfaces are exposed to the public internet or untrusted segments. Coordinate with your network infrastructure teams to restrict access to authorized users only, and reach out to the vendor for guidance on firmware updates to remediate the underlying credential handling flaw.

References

strik3r.gitbook.io/strik3r-blog/security-research/cves-pocs/cve-2023-36082

Written by Nicholas Merritt

Nicholas Merritt is VP of Security Solutions at Halo Security. With more than 25 years across application security, vulnerability prioritization, and offensive security, he helps teams translate threat data into practical exposure validation and remediation focus. He authors Halo Threat Intelligence CVE advisories using Halo Surface Signal and H/A/L/O context to prioritize internet-facing risk.