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Wireless Lan Controller SoftwareOperating system · Cisco

CVE-2012-0371

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2012-03-01
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Cisco Wireless LAN Controller (WLC) devices with software 4.x, 5.x, 6.0, and 7.0 before 7.0.220.4, when CPU-based ACLs are enabled, allow remote attackers to read or modify the configuration via unspecified vectors, aka Bug ID CSCtu56709.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

A vulnerability in Cisco Wireless LAN Controller firmware versions 4.x, 5.x, 6.0, and 7.0 before 7.0.220.4 allows remote attackers to read or modify device configuration when CPU-based ACLs are enabled. The unspecified attack vector combined with CVSS 9.3 indicates trivial network exploitation without authentication, granting full configuration access.

MitigationUpgrade Cisco WLC to version 7.0.220.4 or later; alternatively, if upgrade is not immediately feasible, evaluate disabling CPU-based ACLs as a temporary mitigation while planning the upgrade.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Wireless Lan Controller SoftwareOperating system
Affected:= 4.0= 4.0.108= 4.0.155.0= 4.0.155.5= 4.0.179.8= 4.0.179.11= 4.0.196= 4.0.206.0= 4.0.217.0= 4.0.219.0= 4.1= 4.1.171.0
2000 Wireless Lan ControllerHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
2100 Wireless Lan ControllerHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
2106 Wireless Lan ControllerHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
2112 Wireless Lan ControllerHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
2125 Wireless Lan ControllerHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
2500 Wireless Lan ControllerHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
2504 Wireless Lan ControllerHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify the Cisco WLC model
    Use the 'show inventory' command or check the physical device label to confirm the model number.
    Affected if The model is a Cisco 2000, 2100, 2106, 2112, 2125, 2500, or 2504 Wireless LAN Controller.
  2. Check the firmware version
    Execute 'show version' on the WLC CLI to retrieve the installed software version.
    Affected if The version is 4.x, 5.x, 6.0, or any 7.0.x version before 7.0.220.4.
  3. Verify CPU-based ACLs are enabled
    Run 'show acl summary' or 'show run-config | include acl' to check whether CPU-based Access Control Lists are configured on the controller.
    Affected if CPU-based ACLs are enabled or configured on the device.

The environment is affected if the WLC model is among the vulnerable models listed, the firmware version falls within 4.x, 5.x, 6.0, or 7.0 before 7.0.220.4, and CPU-based ACLs are enabled.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade Cisco WLC to version 7.0.220.4 or later; alternatively, if upgrade is not immediately feasible, evaluate disabling CPU-based ACLs as a temporary mitigation while planning the upgrade.

Recommended fix High confidence

7.0.220.4 or later (or the latest 7.x release compatible with your hardware)

  1. 1. Identify the current Cisco WLC model and software version using 'show version' command
  2. 2. Download the fixed software version 7.0.220.4 or later from Cisco's software download center
  3. 3. Back up the current WLC configuration using 'save config' command
  4. 4. Upload the new software image to the WLC via TFTP, FTP, or the web interface
  5. 5. Reboot the controller to load the new software image
  6. 6. After reboot, verify the new version using 'show version'
  7. 7. Restore the configuration if needed and verify CPU-based ACL functionality
Caveat Ensure the target version supports your WLC hardware model; major version upgrades may require additional migration steps

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Wireless Lan Controller Software Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,500
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2012-0371 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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