Catalyst CenterApplication · Cisco
CVE-2021-1303
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 user management roles of Cisco DNA Center could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to execute unauthorized commands on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to improper enforcement of actions for assigned user roles. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by authenticating as a user with an Observer role and executing commands on the affected device. A successful exploit could allow a user with the Observer role to execute commands to view diagnostic information of the devices that Cisco DNA Center manages.
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 · moderate confidenceCisco DNA Center fails to properly enforce role-based access control (RBAC) for users assigned the Observer role. Authenticated users with the lowest-privilege Observer role can bypass restrictions and execute commands to view diagnostic information on managed devices, contrary to the intended read-only behavior of the Observer role.
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
Catalyst CenterApplication
< 2.1.2.0CVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/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 Cisco DNA Center versionAccess the Cisco DNA Center admin UI and navigate to the About or System Settings page to view the current software version, or use the CLI command 'show version' if available. Alternatively, check the bundled release notes or installation package version.Affected if The installed version is earlier than 2.1.2.0
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Review user accounts with Observer roleIn the DNA Center administration interface, navigate to User Access Settings or User Management to list all assigned roles. Identify any accounts assigned the Observer role.Affected if Any user account is assigned the Observer role (this is the vulnerable role)
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Audit logs for Observer role command executionExamine DNA Center audit logs or system logs for entries where the Actor/User matches an Observer-role account and the action involves execution of diagnostic or show commands on managed devices.Affected if Audit logs show diagnostic commands or device commands executed by users with Observer role, which should not be permitted
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Verify RBAC policy enforcementAs a test, attempt to access diagnostic tools or execute privileged commands using an account with Observer role to confirm whether the RBAC restriction is enforced or bypassed.Affected if Observer role users can access diagnostic functions or execute commands on managed devices, indicating the vulnerability is present
A user is affected if their Cisco DNA Center version is earlier than 2.1.2.0 and they have users assigned the Observer role, particularly if audit logs or tests reveal that Observer accounts can execute diagnostic commands.
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 data2.1.2.0
Apply the relevant Cisco DNA Center patch for CVE-2021-1303. Until patched, monitor audit logs for unexpected command execution by Observer-role users and consider restricting Observer accounts if business functionality permits.
Fix this in Catalyst Center
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 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 $3,088.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-1303 — 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-2021-1303 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
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