Your Netgear router may be vulnerable to a security exploit – how to check and patch it

Do you own a Netgear router? The bad news is that the device could be susceptible to a security flaw that would leave it vulnerable to an attacker. The good news: This exploit affects only a small number of Netgear routers, and the company has already issued patches to squash the bugs. Also: Run this 10-step security check on your phone once a year The vulnerabilities differ slightly among the various affected models, as described in Netgear’s security advisory. In general, these flaws could be exploited by an attacker who gains access to your network, allowing them to run unauthorized and potentially malicious commands on the router. More from ZDNET All the flaws are ranked as medium severity but clearly still pose a threat, prompting Netgear to roll out new firmware for each impacted model. You should be able to update your router to the latest firmware directly through its settings, but you can also grab each update from Netgear’s website. Here are descriptions of the vulnerabilities, the names and models of the affected routers, and links to download the patches. Described in CVE-2026-11732, the first vulnerability could allow an attacker who already has access to your network, most likely through your Wi-Fi credentials, to run unauthorized commands on the device. The flaw is exploitable only if you’ve enabled the Block Sites feature, which blocks access to specific web sites based on domain name or keywords. Also: Firefox and Chrome patch 200+ security flaws combined Aff...