Catalyst CenterApplication · Cisco
CVE-2023-20055
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 management API of Cisco DNA Center could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to elevate privileges in the context of the web-based management interface on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to the unintended exposure of sensitive information. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by inspecting the responses from the API. Under certain circumstances, a successful exploit could allow the attacker to access the API with the privileges of a higher-level user account. To successfully exploit this vulnerability, the attacker would need at least valid Observer credentials.
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 · moderate confidenceThis is a privilege escalation vulnerability in Cisco DNA Center's management API where sensitive information (likely including higher-privilege session tokens or credentials) is inadvertently exposed in API responses. An attacker with valid Observer-level credentials can inspect these responses to obtain elevated session credentials, effectively gaining administrative access to the management interface.
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
Catalyst CenterApplication
< 2.3.3.6= 2.3.4.0CVSS 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
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the installed Cisco DNA Center versionLog into the Cisco DNA Center admin interface and navigate to Settings > System > About, or use the CLI command 'show version' to determine the exact software version runningAffected if The installed version is either less than 2.3.3.6 or exactly 2.3.4.0
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Review Observer-level user accountsNavigate to the Administration > User Management section in the DNA Center interface and enumerate accounts assigned the Observer roleAffected if Any Observer-level accounts exist in the system
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Inspect API response logs for credential exposureReview API transaction logs, access logs, or security audit logs for any responses containing session tokens, credentials, or elevated access tokens that should not be visible to Observer-level usersAffected if API responses to Observer accounts contain elevated session credentials or administrative tokens
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Check for anomalous API access patternsAnalyze API access logs for unusual patterns such as Observer accounts accessing administrative endpoints or retrieving responses that include elevated privilege dataAffected if Observer accounts have accessed API endpoints that return administrative-level credentials or sensitive elevation data
You are affected if running Cisco DNA Center version less than 2.3.3.6 or exactly 2.3.4.0 and Observer-level accounts exist in the environment.
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 · scoped2.3.3.6
Apply the Cisco DNA Center software update that addresses this vulnerability. Until patched, monitor API response traffic for anomalous access patterns and restrict Observer-level accounts to minimal necessary permissions.
Catalyst Center 2.3.5.x or later stable release (minimum 2.3.3.6 for <2.3.3.6 versions, but avoid 2.3.4.0 which is also affected)
- 1. Back up the current Cisco Catalyst Center (DNA Center) configuration and ensure you have a recent backup
- 2. Schedule a maintenance window for the upgrade procedure
- 3. Download the fixed release (2.3.5.x or later stable release) from Cisco's software download page
- 4. Access the Catalyst Center Administration > System > Software Updates interface
- 5. Initiate the software upgrade following Cisco's standard upgrade procedures
- 6. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the software version in the Administration > System > About page
- 7. Confirm that the API no longer exposes sensitive information in responses
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Catalyst Center
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,176.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-20055 — 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-2023-20055 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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