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Elastic Services ControllerApplication · Cisco

CVE-2017-6712

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-07-06
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
A vulnerability in certain commands of Cisco Elastic Services Controller could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to elevate privileges to root and run dangerous commands on the server. The vulnerability occurs because a "tomcat" user on the system can run certain shell commands, allowing the user to overwrite any file on the filesystem and elevate privileges to root. This vulnerability affects Cisco Elastic Services Controller prior to releases 2.3.1.434 and 2.3.2. Cisco Bug IDs: CSCvc76634.

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 privilege escalation vulnerability in Cisco Elastic Services Controller allows an authenticated remote attacker to gain root access. The issue stems from the 'tomcat' user having sudo permissions to run shell commands that permit overwriting any file on the filesystem, enabling privilege escalation to root.

MitigationUpgrade Cisco Elastic Services Controller to version 2.3.1.434, 2.3.2, or later. If upgrade is not immediately feasible, review and restrict the tomcat user's sudo permissions to prevent arbitrary shell command execution.

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
Elastic Services ControllerApplication
Affected:= 1.0.0= 1.1.0= 2.0= 2.1.0= 2.2.0= 2.3.0

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
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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 if Cisco Elastic Services Controller is installed
    Look for Cisco Elastic Services Controller installation directories or check running services/processes related to Cisco ESC. Common locations may include /opt/cisco/ or similar installation prefixes.
    Affected if The software is installed on the system
  2. Determine the installed version of Cisco Elastic Services Controller
    Locate and read the version file or check the installed package version using system package management tools. Compare the version number against the affected list: 1.0.0, 1.1.0, 2.0, 2.1.0, 2.2.0, 2.3.0
    Affected if The installed version matches one of the affected versions listed
  3. Verify the tomcat user exists on the system
    Check system user accounts for a 'tomcat' user using commands like 'getent passwd tomcat' or inspecting /etc/passwd
    Affected if The tomcat user account exists on the system
  4. Inspect sudo permissions for the tomcat user
    Examine the sudoers configuration by checking files in /etc/sudoers.d/ or running 'sudo -l -U tomcat' to list the sudo privileges assigned to the tomcat user
    Affected if The tomcat user has sudo permissions that allow execution of shell commands with file overwrite capabilities (such as commands that can write to arbitrary filesystem locations)
  5. Check for overly permissive sudo rules that allow file manipulation
    Review the specific sudo rules granted to the tomcat user. Look for permissions that permit executing commands capable of overwriting system files, such as shell interpreters or file copy/move operations with elevated privileges
    Affected if The tomcat user's sudo permissions include commands that can overwrite arbitrary files on the filesystem

A system is affected if Cisco Elastic Services Controller version 1.0.0, 1.1.0, 2.0, 2.1.0, 2.2.0, or 2.3.0 is installed AND the tomcat user has sudo permissions that enable arbitrary file overwrite, allowing privilege escalation to root.

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 Elastic Services Controller to version 2.3.1.434, 2.3.2, or later. If upgrade is not immediately feasible, review and restrict the tomcat user's sudo permissions to prevent arbitrary shell command execution.

Fix this in Elastic Services Controller Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,540
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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-2017-6712 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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