Application Services EngineApplication · Cisco
CVE-2021-1393
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 · uneditedMultiple vulnerabilities in Cisco Application Services Engine could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to gain privileged access to host-level operations or to learn device-specific information, create diagnostic files, and make limited configuration changes. For more information about these vulnerabilities, see the Details section of this advisory.
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 confidenceMultiple critical vulnerabilities in Cisco Application Services Engine allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to gain privileged access to host-level operations, potentially achieving administrative control over the underlying infrastructure. Attackers can also retrieve device-specific information, create diagnostic files, and make limited configuration changes.
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 Services EngineApplication
>= 1.1, < 1.1\(3e\)
Application Policy Infrastructure ControllerApplication
= 1.1.3CVSS 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
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 installed Cisco application services productDetermine if Cisco Application Services Engine or Cisco Application Policy Infrastructure Controller (APIC) is deployed in your environment. These are typically deployed as virtual appliances or hardware appliances for application services and policy management.Affected if The product is Cisco Application Services Engine or Cisco APIC.
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Check Cisco Application Services Engine versionAccess the management interface or use the system's built-in version command to retrieve the installed version. Compare it to the affected range: version 1.1 through versions prior to 1.1(3e).Affected if The installed version is >= 1.1 and < 1.1(3e).
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Check Cisco APIC versionIf using Cisco Application Policy Infrastructure Controller, retrieve the version from the APIC management interface or CLI. The affected version is exactly 1.1.3.Affected if The installed version is exactly 1.1.3.
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Assess network exposure of management interfacesDetermine if the management interface of the Cisco application services component is directly accessible from untrusted networks. This vulnerability allows unauthenticated remote access.Affected if Management interfaces are exposed to the internet or untrusted networks.
You are affected if your environment runs Cisco Application Services Engine version 1.1 through versions before 1.1(3e), or Cisco APIC version 1.1.3, and the management interface is network-accessible to unauthenticated users.
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.
dbcve · scoped1.1
Apply Cisco's official patches for Cisco Application Services Engine immediately; if patching is not immediately possible, restrict network access to management interfaces and monitor for unauthorized access attempts.
Application Services Engine: upgrade to version 1.1(3e) or later; Application Policy Infrastructure Controller: upgrade to version 1.1.3f or later (the fixed release available from Cisco)
- 1. Identify the current installed version by accessing the Cisco Application Services Engine or Application Policy Infrastructure Controller CLI and running the command to display the version (e.g., 'show version' or similar).
- 2. Confirm the affected version matches the vulnerable range: Application Services Engine versions 1.1 through 1.1(3e) excluding 1.1(3e), or Application Policy Infrastructure Controller version 1.1.3.
- 3. Schedule a maintenance window for the upgrade, as this will require a system reload.
- 4. Backup all critical configurations and ensure you have console access in case of rollback needs.
- 5. Download the fixed software version 1.1(3e) or later from Cisco's official software download page at tools.cisco.com using valid Cisco credentials and a valid service contract.
- 6. Follow Cisco's documented upgrade procedure for Application Services Engine or Application Policy Infrastructure Controller, which typically involves uploading the software image and initiating the upgrade via the administrative interface.
- 7. After the upgrade completes, verify the new version is installed by checking 'show version' output.
- 8. Verify the vulnerability is remediated by confirming that authentication is now required for the previously unauthenticated endpoints.
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Application Services Engine
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,176.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-1393 — 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-2021-1393 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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