Wireless Lan Controller SoftwareApplication · Cisco
CVE-2023-20056
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 CLI of Cisco access point (AP) software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to cause a denial of service (DoS) condition on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to insufficient input validation of commands supplied by the user. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by authenticating to a device and submitting crafted input to the affected command. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to cause an affected device to reload spontaneously, resulting in a DoS condition.
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 local authenticated command injection vulnerability in Cisco access point management CLI. Insufficient input validation of user-supplied commands allows an authenticated attacker to submit crafted input that causes the affected device to spontaneously reload, resulting in denial of service.
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
Wireless Lan Controller SoftwareApplication
< 8.10.183.0
Aironet Access Point SoftwareApplication
< 17.9.0.135
Ios XeOperating system
< 16.12.8>= 17.1, < 17.3.6>= 17.4, < 17.6.5>= 17.7, < 17.9.2CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 software versionExecute the 'show version' command in the CLI or check the device management interface for the running software versionAffected if The version number is below 8.10.183.0 for Wireless Lan Controller, below 17.9.0.135 for Aironet, or within any of the listed IOS Xe vulnerable ranges (< 16.12.8; 17.1 to < 17.3.6; 17.4 to < 17.6.5; 17.7 to < 17.9.2)
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Confirm the product typeUse 'show version' output to identify whether the device is running Cisco Wireless Lan Controller Software, Cisco Aironet Access Point Software, or Cisco IOS XeAffected if The product matches any of the three affected product families listed in the CVE
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Verify CLI management interface accessibilityCheck if the device CLI is accessible via console, SSH, or telnet by attempting to establish a session or reviewing access control listsAffected if CLI access is available to the network or directly to the device (the vulnerability requires authenticated CLI access)
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Check device uptime and reload historyUse 'show uptime' or 'show reload history' commands to identify unexpected or unexplained device reloadsAffected if The device has reloaded spontaneously without administrative action or power interruption, which is the denial of service symptom described in this CVE
A user is affected if the device runs a Cisco Wireless Lan Controller, Aironet Access Point, or IOS Xe version that falls within the specified vulnerable version ranges and has CLI access available to authenticated users.
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 · scoped8.10.183.016.12.817.3.6
Apply the relevant Cisco software update/patch when available. Until then, limit CLI access to trusted personnel only and monitor for unexpected device reloads.
Wireless Lan Controller: 8.10.183.0+; Aironet AP: 17.9.0.135+; IOS Xe: 16.12.8+, 17.3.6+, 17.6.5+, or 17.9.2+
- 1. Identify the Cisco product in use (Wireless Lan Controller Software, Aironet Access Point Software, or IOS Xe)
- 2. Determine the current installed version using 'show version' command
- 3. For Wireless Lan Controller Software: upgrade to version 8.10.183.0 or later
- 4. For Aironet Access Point Software: upgrade to version 17.9.0.135 or later
- 5. For IOS Xe: upgrade to one of the fixed versions: 16.12.8 or later, 17.3.6 or later, 17.6.5 or later, or 17.9.2 or later
- 6. Download the appropriate firmware from Cisco's official download portal
- 7. Follow Cisco's standard upgrade procedure for the specific device platform
- 8. After upgrade, verify the new version is installed with 'show version'
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Wireless Lan Controller Software
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,304.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-20056 — 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-2023-20056 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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