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Nexus DashboardApplication · Cisco

CVE-2022-20908

MEDIUM · 6.7 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-07-22
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.2 or later.
See remediation →
69/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
Multiple vulnerabilities in Cisco Nexus Dashboard could allow an authenticated, local attacker to elevate privileges on an affected device. These vulnerabilities are due to insufficient input validation during CLI command execution on an affected device. An attacker could exploit these vulnerabilities by authenticating as the rescue-user and executing vulnerable CLI commands using a malicious payload. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to elevate privileges to root on an affected device.

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

Multiple privilege escalation vulnerabilities in Cisco Nexus Dashboard allow an authenticated attacker with rescue-user credentials to inject malicious payloads through CLI commands. Insufficient input validation during CLI execution enables the attacker to bypass restrictions and gain root (UID 0) access on the affected device.

MitigationApply Cisco's vendor patches for CVE-2022-20908 and evaluate disabling or securing the rescue-user account if operationally feasible, as it provides a direct path to root privileges through vulnerable CLI command parsing.

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:>= 2.0, < 2.2\(1e\)

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/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 checks

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

  1. Identify Cisco Nexus Dashboard installation
    Check for Cisco Nexus Dashboard by querying the system for nexus-dashboard processes, checking for /opt/nexus-daemon directory, or reviewing installed packages via package manager if accessible.
    Affected if The system runs Cisco Nexus Dashboard software.
  2. Determine installed Nexus Dashboard version
    Run command to display the Nexus Dashboard version, typically via 'show version' in the NX-OS style CLI if accessible, or check version files in the installation directory.
    Affected if The installed version falls within >= 2.0 and < 2.2(1e).
  3. Verify rescue-user account existence and status
    Check if the rescue-user account is configured on the system by reviewing user databases, /etc/passwd entries, or Cisco-specific user configuration files accessible via admin CLI.
    Affected if The rescue-user account exists and is enabled on the affected device.
  4. Check CLI access configuration
    Review CLI access settings and permissions for the rescue-user role via Cisco Nexus Dashboard CLI configuration mode using 'show user' or 'show privilege' commands if accessible.
    Affected if The rescue-user has CLI execution privileges configured.

You are affected if Cisco Nexus Dashboard version is >= 2.0 and < 2.2(1e) with the rescue-user account enabled and CLI access available.

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 vendor patches for CVE-2022-20908 and evaluate disabling or securing the rescue-user account if operationally feasible, as it provides a direct path to root privileges through vulnerable CLI command parsing.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

2.2(1e) or later

  1. Verify current Nexus Dashboard version by accessing the Dashboard admin UI or using the CLI command 'show version'
  2. Confirm the current version is >= 2.0 and < 2.2(1e) to determine if the system is vulnerable
  3. Plan maintenance window for upgrade as the Dashboard may experience brief downtime
  4. Follow Cisco's standard upgrade procedure for Nexus Dashboard: access the admin UI, navigate to Administration > System > Software Management
  5. Upload the Nexus Dashboard version 2.2(1e) or later software image
  6. Execute the upgrade and monitor for completion
  7. After upgrade, verify the new version using 'show version' to confirm 2.2(1e) or later is installed
  8. Test that the vulnerability is remediated by validating that the rescue-user CLI no longer allows privilege escalation
Caveat Review Cisco Nexus Dashboard 2.2 release notes for any configuration or compatibility changes before upgrading

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

Fix this in Nexus Dashboard Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,088.

Scan for this in your stack

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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-2022-20908 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