The CS5000 Fire Panel is vulnerable due to a default account that exists on the panel. Even though it is possible to change this by SSHing into the device, it has remained unchanged on every installed system observed. This account is not root but holds high-level permissions that could severely impact the devices operation if exploited.
The product initializes or sets a resource with a default that is intended to be changed by the administrator, but the default is not secure.
Developers often choose default values that leave the product as open and easy to use as possible out-of-the-box, under the assumption that the administrator can (or should) change the default value. However, this ease-of-use comes at a cost when the default is insecure and the administrator does not change it.