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Nexus DashboardApplication · Cisco

CVE-2023-20053

MEDIUM · 6.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-03-01
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.3 or later.
See remediation →
68/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges

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 web-based management interface of Cisco Nexus Dashboard could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to conduct a cross-site scripting (XSS) attack against a user of the web-based management interface of an affected device. This vulnerability is due to insufficient user input validation. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by persuading a user of the interface to click a crafted link. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary script code in the context of the affected interface or access sensitive, browser-based information.

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 a reflected XSS vulnerability in Cisco Nexus Dashboard's web-based management interface. Due to insufficient user input validation, an unauthenticated remote attacker can craft malicious links that, when clicked by an authenticated user, execute arbitrary JavaScript in the user's browser context, enabling session hijacking or sensitive data exfiltration.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied patch from Cisco. Until patched, warn users not to click untrusted links and consider implementing Content Security Policy (CSP) headers as an additional defense-in-depth measure.

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:< 2.3\(1c\)

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
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 checks

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

  1. Identify Cisco Nexus Dashboard installation
    Locate and confirm the Cisco Nexus Dashboard product in your environment. Check for the web-based management interface component.
    Affected if The system is running Cisco Nexus Dashboard with its web-based management interface enabled and exposed.
  2. Check installed version
    Access the management interface or use the appropriate command/tool to retrieve the installed Cisco Nexus Dashboard version number.
    Affected if The installed version is lower than 2.3(1c). Compare your version against the affected range.
  3. Verify management interface accessibility
    Confirm whether the web-based management interface is reachable over the network, typically via HTTP/HTTPS on the configured management IP or hostname.
    Affected if The management interface is accessible to network users without additional compensating controls.
  4. Assess authentication requirements
    Determine if the management interface requires authentication and whether session cookies or tokens are used for authenticated sessions.
    Affected if An authenticated session can be established and the application reflects user input without proper sanitization in HTTP responses.

You are affected if Cisco Nexus Dashboard is deployed with its web-based management interface enabled and the installed version is below 2.3(1c), allowing unauthenticated attackers to inject malicious scripts via crafted links for authenticated users to execute.

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 2.3 or later
Fixed in 2.3
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor-supplied patch from Cisco. Until patched, warn users not to click untrusted links and consider implementing Content Security Policy (CSP) headers as an additional defense-in-depth measure.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Cisco Nexus Dashboard version 2.3(1c) or later

  1. 1. Back up the current Nexus Dashboard configuration and ensure you have a rollback plan.
  2. 2. Review Cisco Nexus Dashboard upgrade documentation for your current version.
  3. 3. Download Cisco Nexus Dashboard version 2.3(1c) or later from the Cisco Software Download center.
  4. 4. Upload the upgrade bundle to the Nexus Dashboard cluster.
  5. 5. Initiate the upgrade through the Nexus Dashboard web interface or CLI.
  6. 6. Verify the upgrade completes successfully and all services are operational.
  7. 7. Confirm the fix by logging into the web-based management interface and verifying no XSS vulnerabilities remain.
Caveat Review Cisco release notes for version 2.3(1c) for any compatibility or behavioral 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
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

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-2023-20053 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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