WPSplinter: An Old Wi-Fi Router Bug Lets Nearby Attackers In Without Your Password
A Broadcom Wi-Fi bug dating to 2010, nicknamed WPSplinter, can let someone within wireless range take over a vulnerable router without knowing the Wi-Fi password. Many affected devices are older internet-provider gateways and out-of-support small-business routers. Here's how to check yours.
- wifi
- router
- wpsplinter
- wps
- broadcom
- network-security
- business-wifi
- firmware
- cybersecurity
- smb
- managed-it
If your office still runs on an older internet-provider gateway or a small-business router that stopped getting updates, it's worth checking this week. At the Hexacon security conference in Paris on October 16, 2026, researcher Quentin Kaiser showed a bug he calls WPSplinter. It sits in the Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) code of Broadcom's Wi-Fi software, has been there since about 2010, and lets someone within wireless range run their own code on a vulnerable router without the Wi-Fi password and without finishing a WPS pairing.
Why this one matters
Your router sees every bit of traffic going in and out of the office. An attacker who controls it can watch or redirect that traffic, and Kaiser points out that defenders have very little visibility into these devices. He also warns the attack can work from farther away than the antennas suggest, so a neighboring suite or parking lot may be close enough.
The affected list includes older devices from brands such as Cisco, TP-Link, Netgear, Nokia and ZTE, plus gateways that internet providers hand out. Kaiser estimates about 1.5 million affected routers in Belgium alone, and the worldwide total is unknown. Broadcom has known about the issue since 2018, per Kaiser, but never assigned it a CVE number because the software was outside its support window, so many manufacturers never shipped a fix. Some Cisco small-business models named in coverage (RV110W, RV130W and RV215W) no longer get updates at all.
Active attacks have not been confirmed yet. That's the window to act.
What to do this week
- Read the brand and model off every router and gateway label, including the one your internet provider installed, and compare it with the affected list Kaiser published.
- Ask your internet provider or the manufacturer, in writing, for a firmware update that removes the old WPS code, and when it's coming.
- Don't rely on turning WPS off. Kaiser says disabling WPS may not close the hole on affected devices. A firmware update is the real fix.
- Replace routers that are out of support. If there's no update coming, the device needs to go.
- If you're stuck with the provider's box, turn off its Wi-Fi and run your own updated business router or access points behind it, so the vulnerable radio isn't on the air.
The bigger lesson: Wi-Fi gear is security equipment. It needs an owner, an update schedule and a retirement date like any PC or firewall.
Nice2GeekYou is based in San Antonio, serving all of Texas, and installs and manages business Wi-Fi, firewalls and network wiring on-site. Our managed IT plans also support remote clients across the U.S. Request a quote, see our monthly plans, or text us at (210) 504-8969.
Sources: Cybernews — Broadcom chip flaw lets nearby hackers take over millions of routers (Oct 19–20, 2026); Pasquale Pillitteri — 16-year-old WPSplinter bug lets hackers hijack routers over Wi-Fi, no password (Oct 23, 2026).