Ios XeApplication · Cisco
CVE-2019-16011
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 of Cisco IOS XE SD-WAN Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to inject arbitrary commands that are executed with root privileges. The vulnerability is due to insufficient input validation. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by authenticating to the device and submitting crafted input to the CLI utility. The attacker must be authenticated to access the CLI utility. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute commands with root privileges.
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 confidenceA command injection vulnerability in the Cisco IOS XE SD-WAN Software CLI allows authenticated local attackers to inject arbitrary commands that execute with root privileges due to insufficient input validation in the CLI utility.
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 XeApplication
= 16.10.2= 16.11>= 16.12, < 17.2.1r= 16.9= 16.10= 17.3CVSS 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:3.1/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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Identify the IOS XE versionRun 'show version' or 'show version | include IOS XE' command in the CLI to display the installed software versionAffected if The version shown matches one of the affected versions: 16.9, 16.10, 16.10.2, 16.11, 16.12 through 17.2.1r (excluding 17.2.1r), or 17.3
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Verify SD-WAN feature is enabledRun 'show sdwan version' or check the configuration for SD-WAN related commands such as 'sdwan', 'vsmart', 'vedge' in the running configuration using 'show run | include sdwan'Affected if SD-WAN commands are present or the SD-WAN feature is active on the device
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Confirm CLI access methodCheck if local CLI authentication is configured. Use 'show running-config | include username' to verify local user accounts exist, or check for VTY/TTY access lines with 'show line'Affected if Local CLI authentication is enabled, allowing authenticated users to access the command interface
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Check for privilege escalation indicatorsReview recent command history or logs for unexpected commands executed as root. Use 'show logging | include exec' or check authpriv logs for privilege changesAffected if Any unexpected or unauthorized commands appear in logs or command history with elevated privileges
The environment is affected if the device runs a vulnerable IOS XE version (16.9, 16.10, 16.10.2, 16.11, 16.12-17.2.1, or 17.3) AND has SD-WAN functionality enabled, allowing an authenticated local attacker to inject commands through the SD-WAN CLI.
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 data17.2.1r
Apply the vendor patch from Cisco to address the input validation vulnerability in IOS XE SD-WAN, and restrict CLI access to trusted administrators until the patch is deployed.
Fix this in Ios Xe
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 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 $5,600.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-16011 — 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-2019-16011 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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