dbcve.org
Nexus DashboardApplication · Cisco

CVE-2022-20860

HIGH · 7.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-07-21
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.2 or later.
See remediation →
83/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable No privileges 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 SSL/TLS implementation of Cisco Nexus Dashboard could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to alter communications with associated controllers or view sensitive information. This vulnerability exists because SSL server certificates are not validated when Cisco Nexus Dashboard is establishing a connection to Cisco Application Policy Infrastructure Controller (APIC), Cisco Cloud APIC, or Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller, formerly Data Center Network Manager (DCNM) controllers. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by using man-in-the-middle techniques to intercept the traffic between the affected device and the controllers, and then using a crafted certificate to impersonate the controllers. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to alter communications between devices or view sensitive information, including Administrator credentials for these controllers.

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

Cisco Nexus Dashboard fails to validate SSL/TLS server certificates when establishing connections to APIC, Cloud APIC, or Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (DCNM) controllers. This certificate validation bypass allows man-in-the-middle attackers to intercept traffic and impersonate controllers using crafted certificates, enabling credential theft and communication tampering.

MitigationApply Cisco's patch for CVE-2022-20860 when available. In the interim, ensure network segmentation and topology integrity to prevent MITM attacks against the Nexus Dashboard-to-controller communication paths.

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
Nexus DashboardApplication
Affected:>= 1.1, < 2.2\(1h\)

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
High
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 checks

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

  1. Identify the installed Nexus Dashboard version
    Access the Nexus Dashboard admin interface or use the CLI command to retrieve the current software version. Common methods include logging into the dashboard and checking the 'System' or 'About' section, or running 'show version' via SSH if available.
    Affected if The installed version is 1.1 or later but earlier than 2.2(1h)
  2. Confirm if APIC controllers are configured
    Review the Nexus Dashboard configuration for connections to Cisco Application Policy Infrastructure Controller (APIC) appliances. Check the controller registration settings in the GUI under 'Controllers' or 'Infrastructure' settings, or query the API endpoint that lists registered controllers.
    Affected if The dashboard has one or more APIC controllers registered and configured for communication
  3. Confirm if Cloud APIC is configured
    Examine the configuration for Cloud APIC (Cisco Cloud APIC) controller connections. Look in the dashboard's controller management section for any cloud-based APIC registrations.
    Affected if The dashboard has Cloud APIC controllers registered and configured for communication
  4. Confirm if DCNM controllers are configured
    Check for Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (formerly Data Center Network Manager - DCNM) controller registrations in the Nexus Dashboard. Review the controller inventory or fabric settings.
    Affected if The dashboard has DCNM controllers registered and configured for communication
  5. Check SSL/TLS certificate validation settings
    Inspect the SSL/TLS or certificate validation configuration for the controller connections. This may be accessible via the GUI under controller settings, the API, or configuration files. Look for settings that control certificate verification (such as 'verify SSL certificate', 'validate cert', or similar options).
    Affected if Certificate validation is disabled, set to 'ignore', or the configuration cannot be verified (the connection accepts certificates without validation)

You are affected if your Nexus Dashboard version falls between 1.1 and 2.2(1h) exclusive AND you have APIC, Cloud APIC, or DCNM controllers configured with certificate validation disabled or bypassed.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 2.2 or later
Fixed in 2.2
Interim mitigation

Apply Cisco's patch for CVE-2022-20860 when available. In the interim, ensure network segmentation and topology integrity to prevent MITM attacks against the Nexus Dashboard-to-controller communication paths.

Recommended fix High confidence

Cisco Nexus Dashboard version 2.2(1h) or later

  1. 1. Identify the current version of Cisco Nexus Dashboard by accessing the dashboard admin interface or using CLI commands
  2. 2. Review the Cisco Nexus Dashboard upgrade documentation for your current version to ensure compatibility with the target version
  3. 3. Schedule a maintenance window as upgrades may require downtime
  4. 4. Back up current configuration and verify data integrity before proceeding
  5. 5. Upgrade Cisco Nexus Dashboard to version 2.2(1h) or later following the official Cisco upgrade procedures
  6. 6. After upgrade, verify the SSL/TLS certificate validation is now properly enforced by testing connections to APIC, Cloud APIC, or Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller
  7. 7. Confirm the upgrade was successful and all controllers are communicating with valid certificates

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Nexus Dashboard Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,490
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,984.

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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-2022-20860 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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