Identity Services EngineApplication · Cisco
CVE-2022-20967
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 web-based management interface of Cisco Identity Services Engine could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to conduct cross-site scripting attacks against other users of the application web-based management interface. This vulnerability is due to improper validation of input to an application feature before storage within the web-based management interface. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by creating entries within the application interface that contain malicious HTML or script code. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to store malicious HTML or script code within the application interface for use in further cross-site scripting attacks. Cisco has not yet released software updates that address this vulnerability.
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 confidenceStored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in Cisco Identity Services Engine web-based management interface. An authenticated attacker can inject malicious HTML/script code into application entries, which then executes in the browsers of other users viewing those entries due to improper input validation before storage.
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
Identity Services EngineApplication
< 2.6.0= 2.6.0= 2.7.0= 3.0.0= 3.1= 3.2CVSS 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
- Required
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify Cisco ISE installationCheck if Cisco Identity Services Engine is installed by looking for ISE processes (e.g., 'ise*' processes) or checking for ISE installation directories. On the CLI of the ISE appliance, run 'show version' or check the admin web portal login page for product identification.Affected if Cisco ISE software is not present in the environment, this CVE does not apply.
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Determine installed ISE versionLog into the ISE CLI and run the command 'show version' or access the administration web portal and navigate to Administration > System > System Info to view the ISE version number.Affected if The installed version matches any of the following: 2.6.0, 2.7.0, 3.0.0, 3.1, 3.2, or any version lower than 2.6.0.
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Verify web-based management interface is accessibleConfirm the ISE admin web interface (default ports 443 or 8443) is reachable by attempting to access the management URL or checking listening ports on the ISE appliance with 'show ports' or netstat.Affected if The web-based management interface is not exposed or accessible, the attack surface for this XSS is reduced but the vulnerability still exists in the software.
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Check for suspicious entries in ISE applicationsReview ISE application entries (such as guest portals, sponsor portals, or custom profiles) for any unexpected or encoded content. Use the ISE admin UI to browse to relevant sections like Guest > Portal Settings or Policy > Policy Elements and inspect stored values.Affected if Malicious HTML/script code is found stored in any ISE application entries that could execute when viewed by other users.
You are affected if Cisco ISE is installed with version 2.6.0, 2.7.0, 3.0.0, 3.1, 3.2, or any version below 2.6.0, and the web-based management interface is accessible.
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 · scoped2.6.0
Since no vendor patch is available, implement input validation/sanitization at the application layer, deploy web application firewall rules to filter malicious payloads, or restrict access to the management interface until an official fix is released.
- No fix is available per the CVE description which states 'Cisco has not yet released software updates that address this vulnerability'
- Monitor Cisco Security Advisories (sec.cloudapps.cisco.com) for future patches addressing this CVE
- Implement output encoding and input validation as a compensating control where possible
- Limit administrative access to the web-based management interface to trusted users only
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Identity Services Engine
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $7,680.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-20967 — 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-2022-20967 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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- 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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