Unified Computing SystemApplication · Cisco
CVE-2019-1896
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 web-based management interface of Cisco Integrated Management Controller (IMC) could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to inject arbitrary commands and obtain root privileges. The vulnerability is due to insufficient validation of user-supplied input in the Certificate Signing Request (CSR) function of the web-based management interface. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by submitting a crafted CSR in the web-based management interface. A successful exploit could allow an attacker with administrator privileges to execute arbitrary commands on the device with full 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 confidenceAuthenticated command injection vulnerability in Cisco IMC's web-based management interface. The CSR (Certificate Signing Request) function fails to properly validate user input, allowing an administrator-level attacker to inject and execute arbitrary commands with full root privileges on the underlying 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
Unified Computing SystemApplication
= 4.0\(1c\)hs3
Integrated Management Controller SupervisorApplication
>= 2.0.0.0, < 2.0\(13o\)>= 3.0.0.0, < 3.0\(4k\)>= 4.0.0.0, < 4.0\(4b\)>= 4.0.0.0, < 4.0\(2f\)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
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify Cisco IMC product and versionAccess the web-based management interface and locate the version information, typically found in the 'About' or 'System' section of the UI. Alternatively, use the CLI: connect to the CIMC via SSH and run 'show version' or 'show inventory'.Affected if The installed version matches = 4.0(1c)hs3 for Cisco UCS, or falls within >= 2.0.0.0 and < 2.0(13o), >= 3.0.0.0 and < 3.0(4k), >= 4.0.0.0 and < 4.0(4b), or >= 4.0.0.0 and < 4.0(2f) for Cisco IMC Supervisor.
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Confirm web-based management interface is enabledVerify that the web-based management interface is accessible and active. Check via CLI with 'show http-server' or review network configuration to confirm the web UI is listening on the expected ports (80/443).Affected if The web-based management interface is enabled and reachable, as this is required to access the vulnerable CSR function.
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Locate the CSR (Certificate Signing Request) functionNavigate to the Certificate Management or Security section within the IMC web interface. The vulnerability exists in the CSR generation feature where users can request certificates.Affected if The CSR feature is present and accessible in the web interface, indicating the vulnerable code path exists.
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Review administrator accounts for unauthorized accessAudit the administrator accounts list in the IMC web interface under User Management or Admin settings. Look for unexpected accounts or recent privilege escalations.Affected if Unexpected administrator accounts exist or there are signs of unauthorized administrative access, as an admin-level attacker is needed to exploit this flaw.
Your environment is affected if you run a vulnerable Cisco IMC version and the web-based management interface with CSR functionality is enabled and accessible to an administrator-level user.
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 data2.03.04.0
Apply the Cisco security patch for this vulnerability by upgrading Cisco IMC to a fixed software version. Restrict access to the web-based management interface to trusted networks and limit administrator accounts to essential personnel only.
Fix this in Unified Computing System
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation2.0 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 $3,392.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-1896 — 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-2019-1896 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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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.
- 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
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