Spa500ds FirmwareOperating system · Cisco
CVE-2023-20181
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 Small Business SPA500 Series IP Phones could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to conduct XSS attacks. This vulnerability is due to insufficient validation of user-supplied input by the web-based management interface of the affected software. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by persuading a user 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 confidenceCross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the web-based management interface of Cisco Small Business SPA500 Series IP Phones. Insufficient validation of user-supplied input allows an unauthenticated attacker to inject malicious script code via crafted links. Successful exploitation enables arbitrary JavaScript execution in the context of the affected interface or exfiltration of sensitive browser-based information.
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
Spa500ds FirmwareOperating system
all versions
Spa500s FirmwareOperating system
all versions
Spa501g FirmwareOperating system
all versions
Spa502g FirmwareOperating system
all versions
Spa504g FirmwareOperating system
all versions
Spa508g FirmwareOperating system
all versions
Spa509g FirmwareOperating system
all versions
Spa512g FirmwareOperating system
all versionsCVSS 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the device modelAccess the phone's web interface or check the physical device label for the model number. Common locations: admin page at /admin/ or physical label on the device bottom.Affected if The model number matches one of: SPA500ds, SPA500s, SPA501g, SPA502g, SPA504g, SPA508g, SPA509g, or SPA512g.
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Verify the web-based management interface is enabledAttempt to access the device's web interface via HTTP or HTTPS (typically on port 80 or 443). Check the phone's admin menu under 'Web Server' or 'HTTP/HTTPS Server' settings.Affected if The web management interface responds and displays a login or admin page.
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Confirm network accessibility of the web interfaceScan the network for open HTTP/HTTPS ports (80, 443, 8080) on the IP phone's IP address. Use: nmap -p 80,443,8080 <phone_ip>Affected if The web interface port is open and reachable from a network segment where unauthenticated users could craft malicious links.
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Check for existing exploitation indicatorsReview web server access logs for suspicious URL parameters containing script tags (<script>, javascript:, onerror=, onload=). Inspect proxy or firewall logs for unusual outbound requests originating from the phone's IP.Affected if Logs show malformed requests with script code in URL parameters or unexpected outbound connections.
If you have a Cisco SPA500 series IP phone with the web-based management interface enabled and accessible on the network, you are affected by this vulnerability since all firmware versions are impacted.
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.
From vendor dataApply Cisco security updates when available; in the interim, consider disabling the web-based management interface if not required, implement network segmentation to limit exposure, and train users to avoid clicking untrusted links.
Fix this in Spa500ds Firmware
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-2023-20181 — 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-2023-20181 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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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.
- 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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