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CVE-2021-38543


TP-Link UE330 USB splitter devices through 2021-08-09, in certain specific use cases in which the device supplies power to audio-output equipment, allow remote attackers to recover speech signals from an LED on the device, via a telescope and an electro-optical sensor, aka a "Glowworm" attack. We assume that the USB splitter supplies power to some speakers. The power indicator LED of the USB splitter is connected directly to the power line, as a result, the intensity of the USB splitter's power indicator LED is correlative to its power consumption. The sound played by the connected speakers affects the USB splitter's power consumption and as a result is also correlative to the light intensity of the LED. By analyzing measurements obtained from an electro-optical sensor directed at the power indicator LED of the USB splitter, we can recover the sound played by the connected speakers.


Security Impact Summary

This vulnerability carries a MEDIUM severity rating with a CVSS v3.1 score of 5.9, indicating it can be exploited remotely over the network but requires specific conditions to be met without requiring user interaction and does not require pre-existing privileges . The vulnerability impacts confidentiality (data exposure), for affected systems. Impacting 2 products from tp-link, from tp-link organizations running these solutions should prioritize assessment and patching.

Historical Context

Reported in 2021, this vulnerability emerged during an era marked by increased sophistication in supply chain attacks, cloud infrastructure vulnerabilities, and software-as-a-service (SaaS) security challenges. Security practices during this period emphasized zero-trust architectures, container security, and API protection.


Published

2021-08-11T16:15:07.210

Last Modified

2024-11-21T06:17:23.650

Status

Modified

Source

[email protected]

Severity

CVSSv3.1: 5.9 (MEDIUM)

CVSSv2 Vector

AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N

  • Access Vector: NETWORK
  • Access Complexity: MEDIUM
  • Authentication: NONE
  • Confidentiality Impact: PARTIAL
  • Integrity Impact: NONE
  • Availability Impact: NONE
Exploitability Score

8.6

Impact Score

2.9

Weaknesses
  • Type: Primary
    NVD-CWE-noinfo

Affected Vendors & Products
Type Vendor Product Version/Range Vulnerable?
Operating System tp-link ue330_firmware ≤ 2021-08-09 Yes
Hardware tp-link ue330 - No

References

How SecUtils Interprets This CVE

SecUtils normalizes and enriches National Vulnerability Database (NVD) records by standardizing vendor and product identifiers, aggregating vulnerability metadata from both NVD and MITRE sources, and providing structured context for security teams. For tp-link's affected products, we extract Common Platform Enumeration (CPE) data, Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) classifications, CVSS severity metrics, and reference data to enable rapid vulnerability prioritization and asset correlation. This record contains no exploit code, proof-of-concept instructions, or attack methodologies—only defensive intelligence necessary for patch management, risk assessment, and security operations.