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Application Policy Infrastructure ControllerApplication · Cisco

CVE-2019-1690

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2019-03-11
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 4.2 or later.
See remediation →
70/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
A vulnerability in the management interface of Cisco Application Policy Infrastructure Controller (APIC) software could allow an unauthenticated, adjacent attacker to gain unauthorized access on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to a lack of proper access control mechanisms for IPv6 link-local connectivity imposed on the management interface of an affected device. An attacker on the same physical network could exploit this vulnerability by attempting to connect to the IPv6 link-local address on the affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass default access control restrictions on an affected device. Cisco Application Policy Infrastructure Controller (APIC) devices running versions prior to 4.2(0.21c) are affected.

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 confidence

Cisco APIC management interface lacks proper IPv6 link-local access controls, allowing adjacent attackers on the same physical network to bypass default restrictions and gain unauthorized management access by connecting to the device's IPv6 link-local address.

MitigationUpgrade Cisco APIC to version 4.2(0.21c) or later. Additionally, implement network segmentation to isolate management interfaces and filter IPv6 link-local traffic at network boundaries.

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
Application Policy Infrastructure ControllerApplication
Affected:< 4.2\(0.21c\)

CVSS 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
Adjacent
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify Cisco APIC version
    Access the APIC CLI or GUI and run 'show version' or check the firmware version in the admin settings. Compare against 4.2(0.21c).
    Affected if Version is below 4.2(0.21c)
  2. Verify IPv6 is enabled on management interface
    Check APIC management interface settings via 'show ip interface' or the GUI under Fabric > Fabric Policies > Management > Management Interfaces. Look for IPv6 configuration.
    Affected if IPv6 is enabled and configured on the management interface
  3. Confirm IPv6 link-local address is assigned
    Run 'show ipv6 interface' on the APIC to verify a link-local address (fe80::/10 prefix) is present on the management interface.
    Affected if An IPv6 link-local address is assigned and active
  4. Assess physical network accessibility
    From a system on the same physical network segment, attempt to reach the APIC using its IPv6 link-local address. Use 'ping6 -I <interface> <link-local-address>' or attempt access on management ports (HTTP/HTTPS/SSH).
    Affected if The APIC management interface responds to IPv6 link-local traffic from adjacent network hosts

The environment is affected if the Cisco APIC version is below 4.2(0.21c), IPv6 is enabled on the management interface, and the device is reachable via IPv6 link-local address from adjacent network segments.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Upgrade available Upgrade to 4.2 or later
Fixed in 4.2
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Cisco APIC to version 4.2(0.21c) or later. Additionally, implement network segmentation to isolate management interfaces and filter IPv6 link-local traffic at network boundaries.

Fix this in Application Policy Infrastructure Controller Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.

Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2019-1690 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data