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Adaptive Security Appliance SoftwareOperating system · Cisco

CVE-2012-4663

HIGH · 7.1 CVSS v2.0 Published 2012-10-29
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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
The DCERPC inspection engine on Cisco Adaptive Security Appliances (ASA) 5500 series devices, and the ASA Services Module (ASASM) in Cisco Catalyst 6500 series devices, with software 8.3 before 8.3(2.25), 8.4 before 8.4(2.5), and 8.5 before 8.5(1.13) and the Firewall Services Module (FWSM) 4.1 before 4.1(7) in Cisco Catalyst 6500 series switches and 7600 series routers allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (device reload) via a crafted DCERPC packet, aka Bug IDs CSCtr21346 and CSCtr27521.

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

The DCERPC inspection engine in Cisco ASA 5500 series, ASA Services Module (ASASM), and Firewall Services Module (FWSM) contains a vulnerability where a specially crafted DCERPC packet can cause the device to reload, resulting in denial of service. The attack is remote and requires no authentication.

MitigationUpgrade Cisco ASA software to version 8.3(2.25) or later, 8.4(2.5) or later, 8.5(1.13) or later, or FWSM to 4.1(7) or later. If immediate upgrade is not possible, consider restricting DCERPC traffic at upstream perimeter devices.

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
Adaptive Security Appliance SoftwareOperating system
Affected:= 8.3\(1\)= 8.3\(2\)= 8.4= 8.4\(1\)= 8.4\(1.11\)= 8.4\(2\)= 8.4\(2.11\)= 8.5= 8.5\(1\)= 8.5\(1.4\)
5500 Series Adaptive Security ApplianceHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
7600 RouterHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
Catalyst 6500Hardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
Catalyst 6503 EHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
Catalyst 6504 EHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
Catalyst 6506 EHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
Catalyst 6509 EHardware / 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
None
Integrity
None
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/I:N/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 device model
    Run 'show version' or 'show module' to determine if the device is a Cisco ASA 5500 series, ASA Services Module, Firewall Services Module, Cisco 7600 Router, or Catalyst 6500 series switch.
    Affected if Device is any of these models and falls within the affected product families.
  2. Check ASA software version
    Run 'show version' and locate the 'Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance Software' version line. Compare it against affected versions: 8.3(1), 8.3(2), 8.4, 8.4(1), 8.4(1.11), 8.4(2), 8.4(2.11), 8.5, 8.5(1), 8.5(1.4).
    Affected if The running version matches any of these exact versions.
  3. Check FWSM version if applicable
    Run 'show module' to locate the FWSM, then run 'show module <slot> version' to get the FWSM software version.
    Affected if FWSM is running on an affected platform.
  4. Verify DCERPC inspection is enabled
    Run 'show running-config | include dcerpc' or 'show service-policy | include dcerpc' to check if DCERPC inspection is configured on any interface.
    Affected if DCERPC inspection policy is active in the configuration.
  5. Confirm DCERPC traffic is permitted
    Run 'show access-list' or examine the interface configuration to determine if DCERPC traffic (TCP ports 135, 139, 445, or UDP ports 135, 139, 445) is allowed through the device.
    Affected if DCERPC traffic is permitted through any interface without being blocked at the perimeter.

You are affected if you are running a vulnerable Cisco ASA, ASASM, FWSM, or 7600/Catalyst 6500 device with the listed software versions AND DCERPC inspection is enabled AND DCERPC traffic is allowed through the device.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade Cisco ASA software to version 8.3(2.25) or later, 8.4(2.5) or later, 8.5(1.13) or later, or FWSM to 4.1(7) or later. If immediate upgrade is not possible, consider restricting DCERPC traffic at upstream perimeter devices.

Fix this in Adaptive Security Appliance Software Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2012-4663 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
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data