Ios XeOperating system · Cisco
CVE-2018-0481
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 · uneditedA vulnerability in the CLI parser of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to execute commands on the underlying Linux shell of an affected device with root privileges. The vulnerability exist because the affected software improperly sanitizes command arguments, failing to prevent access to certain internal data structures on an affected device. An attacker who has privileged EXEC mode (privilege level 15) access to an affected device could exploit these vulnerabilities on the device by executing CLI commands that contain custom arguments. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary commands with root privileges on the affected device.
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 · moderate confidenceCisco IOS XE Software contains a privilege escalation vulnerability in its CLI parser where an authenticated attacker with privilege level 15 (EXEC mode) can execute arbitrary Linux shell commands with root privileges due to improper sanitization of command arguments that allows access to internal data structures.
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
= 15.3\(3\)s3.16= 16.7\(1\)= 16.7.1CVSS 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
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/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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Confirm Cisco IOS XE platformRun 'show version' and verify the device is running Cisco IOS XE software (not classic IOS or IOS-XR)Affected if The device does not run Cisco IOS XE - this vulnerability only affects IOS XE
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Identify the IOS XE versionExecute 'show version' and locate the IOS XE version number in the output (displayed as IOS XE [version])Affected if The installed version equals 15.3(3)s3, 16.7(1), or 16.7.1, or falls within these specific version points
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Check privilege levelRun 'show privilege' to determine the current user privilege levelAffected if The current user has privilege level 15 (EXEC mode) - this is required for exploitation
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Audit for command injection artifactsReview system logs, command history, and configuration for unexpected shell commands or evidence of Linux command executionAffected if Evidence shows arbitrary Linux shell commands were executed beyond normal IOS XE CLI operations
A system is affected if it runs Cisco IOS XE versions 15.3(3)s3, 16.7(1), or 16.7.1 and an authenticated privilege level 15 user exploited the CLI parser vulnerability to execute arbitrary commands
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 dataApply the Cisco IOS XE software update that addresses this vulnerability; restrict privileged EXEC access to only necessary personnel and monitor for suspicious command usage.
Fix this in Ios Xe
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,408.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-0481 — 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-2018-0481 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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