FinesseApplication · Cisco
CVE-2020-3159
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 Finesse could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to conduct a cross-site scripting (XSS) attack against a user of the web-based management interface of the affected software. The vulnerability is due to insufficient validation of user-supplied input by the web-based management interface of the affected software. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by persuading a user to click a malicious link. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary script code in the context of the affected interface or access sensitive, browser-based information.
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 confidenceCisco Finesse contains a stored XSS vulnerability in its web-based management interface due to insufficient validation of user-supplied input. An unauthenticated remote attacker can exploit this by tricking users into clicking malicious links, allowing execution of arbitrary script code in the context of the affected interface or access to sensitive browser-based information.
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
FinesseApplication
< 12.5\(1\)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
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/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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Confirm Cisco Finesse installationIdentify if Cisco Finesse is deployed in your environment. Check for Finesse services running on the system or review installed software listings.Affected if Cisco Finesse software is present on the system
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Determine installed Finesse versionAccess the Finesse web-based management interface or use the system's software inventory to retrieve the installed version number. Compare it against the affected range: versions prior to 12.5(1).Affected if The installed version is lower than 12.5(1)
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Verify management interface accessibilityDetermine whether the Cisco Finesse web-based management interface is accessible from the network. This may involve checking firewall rules, listener configurations, or attempting to reach the management URL.Affected if The management interface is network-accessible to users who could be targeted
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Assess user exposure to management linksEvaluate whether users have access to or could be tricked into clicking links pointing to the Finesse management interface.Affected if Users can access or are likely to receive links to the management interface
You are affected if Cisco Finesse version 12.0(x) or any version below 12.5(1) is installed and its web-based management interface is accessible to users who could be targeted with malicious links.
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 data12.5
Apply the vendor patch released by Cisco for CVE-2020-3159. Until patched, exercise caution with links to the Finesse management interface and consider network-based restrictions to limit exposure.
Fix this in Finesse
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation3.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,272.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-3159 — 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-2020-3159 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data