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iOSOperating system · Cisco

CVE-2015-0687

MEDIUM · 6.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2015-04-03
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
69/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable 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 SNMP implementation in Cisco IOS 15.1(2)SG4 on Catalyst 4500 devices, when single-switch Virtual Switching System (VSS) is configured, allows remote authenticated users to cause a denial of service (device crash) by performing SNMP polling, aka Bug ID CSCuq04574.

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

This is a denial of service vulnerability in Cisco IOS 15.1(2)SG4 on Catalyst 4500 switches. When single-switch Virtual Switching System (VSS) is configured, authenticated remote users performing SNMP polling can trigger a device crash. The vulnerability requires both authentication and a specific VSS configuration to be exploitable.

MitigationUpgrade to a fixed Cisco IOS version beyond 15.1(2)SG4, or if immediate patching is not feasible, restrict SNMP access to trusted management networks and consider disabling SNMP if not required for operations.

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
iOSOperating system
Affected:= 15.1\(2\)sg4= 15.1sg

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
Single
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:M/Au:S/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 inventory' to confirm the hardware is a Cisco Catalyst 4500 series switch
    Affected if Device is not a Catalyst 4500 switch
  2. Check the Cisco IOS version
    Run 'show version' and examine the IOS version string. Look for 15.1(2)SG4 or 15.1sg versions
    Affected if IOS version equals 15.1(2)SG4 or 15.1sg
  3. Verify if VSS is configured
    Run 'show vss' or 'show switch virtual' to check for Virtual Switching System configuration
    Affected if Single-switch VSS mode is active or VSS is configured at all
  4. Confirm SNMP is enabled
    Run 'show snmp' or 'show run | include snmp' to check if SNMP is configured and active
    Affected if SNMP is enabled and accessible from the polling source

You are affected if you run Cisco IOS 15.1(2)SG4 or 15.1sg on a Catalyst 4500 switch with VSS configured and SNMP 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.

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

Upgrade to a fixed Cisco IOS version beyond 15.1(2)SG4, or if immediate patching is not feasible, restrict SNMP access to trusted management networks and consider disabling SNMP if not required for operations.

Fix this in iOS Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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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-2015-0687 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