Junos OS (SRX firewalls)
CVE-2025-52983: After removing ssh public key authentication root can still log in
A UI Discrepancy for Security Feature vulnerability in the UI of Juniper Networks Junos OS on VM Host systems allows a network-based, unauthenticated attacker to access the device.
Published
Automatic summary from the vendor's CVE record. We haven't written a full analysis of this vulnerability yet.
Affected and fixed versions
| Product / branch | Fixed in |
|---|---|
| Junos OS 0 | 22.2R3-S7 or later |
| Junos OS 22.4 | 22.4R3-S5 or later |
| Junos OS 23.2 | 23.2R2-S3 or later |
| Junos OS 23.4 | 23.4R2-S3 or later |
| Junos OS 24.2 | 24.2R1-S2, 24.2R2 or later |
Always confirm against the vendor advisory, which lists every fixed hotfix.
What it is
A UI Discrepancy for Security Feature
vulnerability in the UI of Juniper Networks Junos OS on VM Host systems allows a network-based, unauthenticated attacker to access the device.
On VM Host Routing Engines (RE), even if the configured public key for root has been removed, remote users which are in possession of the corresponding private key can still log in as root. This issue affects Junos OS:
- all versions before 22.2R3-S7,
- 22.4 versions before 22.4R3-S5,
- 23.2 versions before 23.2R2-S3,
- 23.4 versions before 23.4R2-S3,
- 24.2 versions before 24.2R1-S2, 24.2R2.
Am I affected?
To be affected a system needs to have been configured with ssh public key authentication previously:
[ system root-authentication ssh-... ]
Workarounds
To prevent this issue from being ocuring, public key authentication for root can be explicitly disabled with:
[
system root-authentication no-public-keys
]
Exploitation
Juniper SIRT is not aware of any malicious exploitation of this vulnerability.
Sources
KEV status, EPSS score and vendor data refreshed automatically, last on 13 Oct 2026.