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Nx OsOperating system · Cisco

CVE-2019-1781

MEDIUM · 6.7 CVSS v3.1 Published 2019-05-15
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.2.2.91 / 2.3.1.130 or later.
See remediation →
69/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 CLI of Cisco FXOS Software and Cisco NX-OS Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system of an affected device. This vulnerability is due to insufficient validation of arguments passed to certain CLI commands. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by including malicious input as the argument of an affected command. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system with elevated privileges. An attacker would need administrator credentials to exploit this vulnerability.

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

A command injection vulnerability in the CLI of Cisco FXOS Software and Cisco NX-OS Software allows an authenticated local attacker with administrator privileges to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system due to insufficient validation of arguments passed to certain CLI commands.

MitigationApply the relevant Cisco security patches for FXOS and NX-OS software; restrict CLI access to trusted administrators and monitor for suspicious command execution patterns.

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
Nx OsOperating system
Affected:>= 5.2, < 6.2\(25\)>= 7.3, < 8.3\(2\)< 7.0\(3\)i4\(9\)>= 7.0\(3\)i7, < 7.0\(3\)i7\(4\)< 7.3\(4\)n1\(1\)< 6.2\(22\)>= 7.2, < 7.3\(3\)d1\(1\)>= 8.0, < 8.2\(3\)>= 8.3, < 8.3\(1\)< 6.0\(2\)a8\(11\)>= 7.0\(3\)i4, < 7.0\(3\)i4\(9\)< 4.0\(1a\)
Fx OsOperating system
Affected:< 2.2.2.91>= 2.3, < 2.3.1.130>= 2.4, < 2.4.1.222

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
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 checks

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

  1. Identify product and version
    Run 'show version' command in the CLI for Cisco NX-OS, or 'show fxos version' or 'show version' for Cisco FXOS
    Affected if The displayed version falls within any of the affected ranges listed in the CVE (for NX-OS: >= 5.2, < 6.2(25); >= 7.3, < 8.3(2); < 7.0(3)i4(9); >= 7.0(3)i7, < 7.0(3)i7(4); < 7.3(4)n1(1); < 6.2(22); >= 7.2, < 7.3(3)d1(1); >= 8.0, < 8.2(3); >= 8.3, < 8.3(1); < 6.0(2)a8(11); >= 7.0(3)i4, < 7.0(3)i4(9);
  2. Verify CLI administrator access exists
    Check for local administrator accounts using 'show running-config | include username' or 'show users' command
    Affected if There are administrator-level accounts configured, as the attacker requires admin privileges to exploit this vulnerability
  3. Confirm CLI is accessible
    Verify the CLI is reachable via console, SSH, or telnet by attempting connection or checking management interface status with 'show interface mgmt0'
    Affected if CLI access is enabled (this is the default state for both FXOS and NX-OS)
  4. Check for suspicious command history
    Review command history logs if available, or check system logs for unusual commands using 'show logging' or reviewing audit logs
    Affected if Unexpected or malformed CLI commands appear in logs, which may indicate exploitation attempts

You are affected if your installed Cisco NX-OS or FXOS version matches any of the affected version ranges AND your CLI is accessible to an authenticated administrator.

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 2.2.2.91 / 2.3.1.130 / 2.4.1.222 or later
Fixed in 2.2.2.912.3.1.1302.4.1.222
Interim mitigation

Apply the relevant Cisco security patches for FXOS and NX-OS software; restrict CLI access to trusted administrators and monitor for suspicious command execution patterns.

Fix this in Nx Os Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,088.

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-2019-1781 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