CVE-2018-11752
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 · uneditedPrevious releases of the Puppet cisco_ios module output SSH session debug information including login credentials to a world readable file on every run. These issues have been resolved in the 0.4.0 release.
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 confidenceThe Puppet cisco_ios module versions prior to 0.4.0 wrote SSH session debug output containing cleartext login credentials to a world-readable file on the filesystem during every module run. This exposed sensitive authentication credentials to any local user on the system.
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< 0.4.0CVSS 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
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/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 installed cisco_ios module versionRun 'puppet module list' or check the module metadata in the Puppet modules directory (typically /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules or /opt/puppetlabs/puppet/modules) for the cisco_ios module versionAffected if The installed version is lower than 0.4.0 or the version cannot be determined (module may be very old)
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Locate debug output filesSearch the filesystem for debug log files that may have been created by the cisco_ios module. Common locations include the module's log directory, /tmp, or the Puppet run directory. Look for files with names containing 'debug', 'log', 'ssh', or 'cisco_ios'Affected if Any debug files created by the module exist on the system
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Inspect debug file contents for credentialsExamine any identified debug files for patterns matching usernames, passwords, or SSH keys. Look for strings like 'password', 'secret', 'key', or authentication-related keywords in cleartextAffected if Debug files contain cleartext login credentials, SSH keys, or other authentication material
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Verify debug file permissionsRun 'ls -la' on any debug files found and check the file permissions. The vulnerability specifically notes files were world-readable (permissions like 644 or more open)Affected if Debug files are readable by all users (world-readable permissions)
A user is affected if the cisco_ios module version is below 0.4.0 AND debug files containing credentials exist on the system with overly permissive (world-readable) permissions.
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 data0.4.0
Upgrade the Puppet cisco_ios module to version 0.4.0 or later. Verify that no credential-containing debug files remain on systems that previously ran vulnerable versions.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing4.0 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 $2,464.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-11752 — 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-2018-11752 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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