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Adaptive Security Appliance SoftwareOperating system · Cisco

CVE-2022-20928

MEDIUM · 5.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-11-15
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
67/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 authentication and authorization flows for VPN connections in Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) Software and Firepower Threat Defense (FTD) Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to establish a connection as a different user. This vulnerability is due to a flaw in the authorization verifications during the VPN authentication flow. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted packet during a VPN authentication. The attacker must have valid credentials to establish a VPN connection. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to establish a VPN connection with access privileges from a different user.

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

This is an authorization bypass vulnerability in Cisco ASA and FTD VPN authentication flows. A remote attacker with valid credentials can send a crafted packet during VPN authentication to establish a connection with another user's privileges, effectively impersonating other users through the VPN.

MitigationApply the relevant Cisco security updates for ASA and FTD software that address this authorization verification flaw in the VPN authentication flow.

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
Adaptive Security Appliance SoftwareOperating system
Affected:= 9.6.1= 9.6.1.3= 9.6.1.5= 9.6.1.10= 9.6.2= 9.6.2.1= 9.6.2.2= 9.6.2.3= 9.6.2.7= 9.6.2.11= 9.6.2.13= 9.6.2.22
Secure Firewall Threat DefenseApplication
Affected:= 6.1.0= 6.1.0.1= 6.1.0.2= 6.1.0.3= 6.1.0.4= 6.1.0.5= 6.1.0.6= 6.1.0.7= 6.2.0= 6.2.0.1= 6.2.0.2= 6.2.0.3

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
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/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 checks

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

  1. Identify the Cisco product in use
    Log into the device CLI and run 'show version' or check the device model/manufacturer documentation to confirm whether it is Cisco ASA (Adaptive Security Appliance) or FTD (Firepower Threat Defense)
    Affected if The device is not Cisco ASA or FTD software (this CVE only applies to those products)
  2. Determine the ASA software version
    If the device is Cisco ASA, run 'show version' in the CLI and locate the version string (for example: 9.6.1, 9.6.2.7, etc.)
    Affected if The installed version matches any of these exact versions: 9.6.1, 9.6.1.3, 9.6.1.5, 9.6.1.10, 9.6.2, 9.6.2.1, 9.6.2.2, 9.6.2.3, 9.6.2.7, 9.6.2.11, 9.6.2.13, or 9.6.2.22
  3. Determine the FTD software version
    If the device is Cisco FTD, run 'show version' in the CLI and locate the version string (for example: 6.2.0.3, 6.1.0.7, etc.)
    Affected if The installed version matches any of these exact versions: 6.1.0, 6.1.0.1, 6.1.0.2, 6.1.0.3, 6.1.0.4, 6.1.0.5, 6.1.0.6, 6.1.0.7, 6.2.0, 6.2.0.1, 6.2.0.2, or 6.2.0.3
  4. Verify VPN remote access is enabled
    Check the ASA/FTD configuration by running 'show run' and searching for VPN-related configuration such as 'ssl vpn', 'ipsec vpn', 'anyconnect', or 'remote-access VPN' settings
    Affected if VPN remote access functionality is configured and active on the device (the vulnerability only affects VPN authentication flows)

The environment is affected if the device runs Cisco ASA software version 9.6.1 through 9.6.2.22 (specific exact versions) or Cisco FTD software version 6.1.0 through 6.2.0.3 (specific exact versions), AND remote access VPN is enabled.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the relevant Cisco security updates for ASA and FTD software that address this authorization verification flaw in the VPN authentication flow.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

ASA 9.6.4+ or FTD 6.2.0+ (obtain latest recommended release from Cisco)

  1. 1. Identify the exact ASA or FTD version currently installed using 'show version' command
  2. 2. Access Cisco.com and navigate to the Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) Software or Firepower Threat Defense (FTD) software download page
  3. 3. Locate the fixed release for your product line - for ASA 9.6.x, obtain version 9.6.4 or later; for FTD 6.1.x, obtain version 6.2.0 or later
  4. 4. Download the appropriate fixed software image for your hardware platform
  5. 5. Upload the new image to the device using the 'copy' command or via the device management interface
  6. 6. Schedule a maintenance window as the upgrade will require a reload
  7. 7. Install the upgrade using the 'upgrade' command or via ASDM/FDM management interface
  8. 8. After reboot, verify the new version is installed with 'show version'
Caveat Standard upgrade risks apply - device reload will cause brief connectivity interruption; verify compatibility with existing configurations and any dependent integrations

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

Fix this in Adaptive Security Appliance Software Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,500
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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-2022-20928 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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