Ios XeOperating system · Cisco
CVE-2018-0185
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 · uneditedMultiple vulnerabilities in the CLI parser of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to inject arbitrary commands into the CLI of the affected software, which could allow the attacker to gain access to the underlying Linux shell of an affected device and execute commands with root privileges on the device. The vulnerabilities exist because the affected software does not sufficiently sanitize command arguments before passing commands to the Linux shell for execution. An attacker could exploit these vulnerabilities by submitting a malicious CLI command to the affected software. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to break from the CLI of the affected software, which could allow the attacker to gain access to the underlying Linux shell on an affected device and execute arbitrary commands with root privileges on the device. Cisco Bug IDs: CSCuz03145, CSCuz56419, CSCva31971, CSCvb09542.
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 confidenceMultiple command injection vulnerabilities in the CLI parser of Cisco IOS XE Software allow an authenticated local attacker to inject arbitrary commands into the CLI. Successful exploitation grants access to the underlying Linux shell with root privileges due to insufficient sanitization of command arguments before passing them to the Linux shell for 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
Ios XeOperating system
< 16.3.1CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Determine IOS XE versionRun 'show version' command on the Cisco device CLI and locate the version string (typically shown as 'Version 16.x.y' or similar)Affected if The displayed version number is less than 16.3.1 (for example, 16.2.x, 16.1.x, 15.x.x)
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Confirm product is IOS XEIn the 'show version' output, verify the software is listed as 'Cisco IOS XE Software' rather than classic IOS or other platformsAffected if The software is confirmed as Cisco IOS XE and the version is below 16.3.1
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Check for local CLI access exposureReview access controls and user accounts on the device using 'show users' and 'show privilege' commands to determine if multiple users have CLI accessAffected if The device has local CLI accounts (beyond a single secure admin) and runs a vulnerable IOS XE version below 16.3.1
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Audit recent CLI command logsUse 'show history' or review any logging/AAA records for suspicious command patterns that may indicate exploitation attemptsAffected if Unusual or malformed CLI commands appear in history or logs, especially from users with elevated privileges
A Cisco IOS XE device is affected if it runs version 16.2.x or earlier (below 16.3.1) and allows authenticated local CLI access, as the command injection flaw exists in the CLI parser of these versions.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 data16.3.1
Apply the relevant Cisco IOS XE software updates/patches for bug IDs CSCuz03145, CSCuz56419, CSCva31971, and CSCvb09542. Additionally, restrict local CLI access to trusted, authorized personnel only.
Fix this in Ios Xe
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing5.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-0185 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2018-0185 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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