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iOSOperating system · Cisco

CVE-2023-20186

CRITICAL · 9.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-09-27
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
97/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable Zero-click

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 Authentication, Authorization, and Accounting (AAA) feature of Cisco IOS Software and Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to bypass command authorization and copy files to or from the file system of an affected device using the Secure Copy Protocol (SCP). This vulnerability is due to incorrect processing of SCP commands in AAA command authorization checks. An attacker with valid credentials and level 15 privileges could exploit this vulnerability by using SCP to connect to an affected device from an external machine. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to obtain or change the configuration of the affected device and put files on or retrieve files from the affected device.

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

A vulnerability in Cisco IOS/IOS XE Software's AAA feature allows authenticated remote attackers with level 15 privileges to bypass command authorization when using SCP. The flaw is in how SCP commands are processed through AAA authorization checks, enabling attackers to copy files to/from the device filesystem and potentially obtain or modify device configuration.

MitigationApply the Cisco patch/ios update for CVE-2023-20186 when available. Until then, restrict SCP access via AAA authorization policies and monitor for unauthorized file transfers.

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
iOSOperating system
Affected:= 12.2\(58\)ex= 12.2\(58\)ey= 12.2\(58\)ey1= 12.2\(58\)ey2= 12.2\(58\)ez= 12.2\(58\)se= 12.2\(58\)se1= 12.2\(58\)se2= 12.2\(60\)ez= 12.2\(60\)ez1= 12.2\(60\)ez2= 12.2\(60\)ez3
Ios XeOperating system
Affected:= 3.2.0se= 3.2.1se= 3.2.2se= 3.2.3se= 3.3.0se= 3.3.0sg= 3.3.0xo= 3.3.1se= 3.3.1sg= 3.3.1xo= 3.3.2se= 3.3.2sg

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
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/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 checks

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

  1. Identify the installed Cisco IOS or IOS XE version
    Run the command 'show version' on the device CLI and locate the version string in the output
    Affected if The displayed version matches any of the following: Cisco iOS 12.2(58)ex, 12.2(58)ey, 12.2(58)ey1, 12.2(58)ey2, 12.2(58)ez, 12.2(58)se, 12.2(58)se1, 12.2(58)se2, 12.2(60)ez, 12.2(60)ez1, 12.2(60)ez2, 12.2(60)ez3 OR Cisco IOS XE 3.2.0se through 3.3.2sg (specific releases include 3.2.xse, 3.3.0se, 3.3
  2. Verify if SCP server is enabled
    Run the command 'show ip scp' or check the configuration with 'show running-config | include scp'
    Affected if The output shows SCP server is enabled or configured on the device
  3. Confirm AAA authorization is configured for exec and command access
    Run 'show running-config | include aaa authorization' to view AAA authorization policies
    Affected if AAA authorization is configured and includes exec or commands, but the device is running an affected version; the vulnerability bypasses these checks for SCP traffic
  4. Check for level 15 user accounts with network access
    Review the output of 'show users' and 'show running-config | include username' to identify privileged level 15 accounts
    Affected if Level 15 privilege accounts exist and have network access, which combined with an affected version and SCP enabled creates the exploitation condition

The device is affected if it runs a vulnerable Cisco iOS or IOS XE version from the listed ranges, has SCP server enabled, and has AAA authorization configured with level 15 privileged accounts accessible over the network.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the Cisco patch/ios update for CVE-2023-20186 when available. Until then, restrict SCP access via AAA authorization policies and monitor for unauthorized file transfers.

Fix this in iOS Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2023-20186 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