TP-Link TL-WA855RE V5 20200415-rel37464 devices allow an unauthenticated attacker (on the same network) to submit a TDDP_RESET POST request for a factory reset and reboot. The attacker can then obtain incorrect access control by setting a new administrative password.

This vulnerability allows network-adjacent attackers to escalate privileges on affected installations of TP-Link TL-WA855RE Firmware Ver: 855rev4-up-ver1-0-1-P1[20191213-rel60361] Wi-Fi extenders. Although authentication is required to exploit this vulnerability, the existing authentication mechanism can be bypassed. The specific flaw exists within the first-time setup process. The issue results from the lack of proper validation on first-time setup requests. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to reset the password for the Admin account and execute code in the context of the device. Was ZDI-CAN-10003.