CVE-2018-10553
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 · uneditedAn issue was discovered in Nagios XI 5.4.13. A registered user is able to use directory traversal to read local files, as demonstrated by URIs beginning with index.php?xiwindow=./ and config/?xiwindow=../ substrings.
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 confidenceAuthenticated directory traversal vulnerability in Nagios XI 5.4.13 allows registered users to read arbitrary local files via manipulated xiwindow parameters in index.php and config/ endpoints using ../ or ./ path sequences.
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= 5.4.13CVSS 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
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
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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Identify Nagios XI versionRun command: cat /usr/local/nagiosxi/etc/xi-sys.cfg | grep 'INSTALLED_VERSION' or check the Nagios XI admin web interface under Admin > System InformationAffected if Version is exactly 5.4.13
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Verify web interface accessibilityConfirm the Nagios XI web interface at /nagiosxi/ is accessible and requires authentication. The vulnerability requires an authenticated user session.Affected if Web interface is publicly accessible without authentication or allows unauthenticated access to index.php
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Check for vulnerable xiwindow parameter handlingInspect index.php and config/ endpoint source code in /usr/local/nagiosxi/html/ for xiwindow parameter usage. Look for file inclusion functions that use this parameter without sanitization.Affected if Code uses the xiwindow parameter in file operations without filtering ../ or ./ sequences
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Test path traversal filter effectivenessIf you have authenticated access, attempt a controlled test request to index.php with xiwindow=../../../etc/passwd or similar path to verify whether the filter blocks or allows traversal. Only perform this in a non-production environment.Affected if The application allows reading files outside the intended directory via path traversal in the xiwindow parameter
The environment is affected if Nagios XI version 5.4.13 is installed and the web interface permits authenticated users to access the vulnerable xiwindow parameter in index.php or config/ endpoints without proper path traversal filtering.
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 vendor patch for CVE-2018-10553; implement strict input validation on the xiwindow parameter to reject path traversal sequences before any file operations.
- Consultation2.0 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 $3,088.
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-10553 — 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-2018-10553 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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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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