dbcve.org
Broadworks Application Delivery Platform FirmwareOperating system · Cisco

CVE-2023-20210

MEDIUM · 6.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-07-12
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
62/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 Cisco BroadWorks could allow an authenticated, local attacker to elevate privileges to the root user on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to insufficient input validation by the operating system CLI. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by issuing a crafted command to the affected system. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute commands as the root user. To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker must have valid BroadWorks administrative privileges on 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 · moderate confidence

Cisco BroadWorks contains a privilege escalation vulnerability in its operating system CLI due to insufficient input validation. An authenticated attacker with valid BroadWorks administrative privileges can issue crafted commands to execute arbitrary code as the root user.

MitigationApply the Cisco patch for CVE-2023-20210 once available, or implement strict CLI command whitelisting and monitor administrative account activity until a patch is deployed.

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
Broadworks Application Delivery Platform FirmwareOperating system
Affected:= 23.0= 24.0= 25.0
Broadworks Application Server FirmwareOperating system
Affected:= 23.0= 24.0= 25.0
Broadworks Database Server FirmwareOperating system
Affected:= 23.0= 24.0= 25.0
Broadworks Database Troubleshooting Server FirmwareOperating system
Affected:= 23.0= 24.0= 25.0
Broadworks Execution Server FirmwareOperating system
Affected:= 23.0= 24.0= 25.0
Broadworks Media Server FirmwareOperating system
Affected:= 23.0= 24.0= 25.0
Broadworks Messaging Server FirmwareOperating system
Affected:= 23.0= 24.0= 25.0
Broadworks Network Database Server FirmwareOperating system
Affected:= 23.0= 24.0= 25.0

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 installed BroadWorks components and firmware versions
    Access the BroadWorks CLI and run 'show version' or 'show system info' to list all installed components and their respective firmware version numbers
    Affected if Any of these components are present: Application Delivery Platform, Application Server, Database Server, Database Troubleshooting Server, Execution Server, Media Server, Messaging Server, or Network Database Server
  2. Verify firmware version against affected releases
    Compare the installed firmware version shown by the CLI to the exact versions 23.0, 24.0, or 25.0
    Affected if The firmware version is exactly 23.0, exactly 24.0, or exactly 25.0 (the equals sign indicates only these exact versions are affected)
  3. Confirm CLI interface is accessible
    Check the system configuration for CLI or SSH access status using 'show cli config' or 'show running-config' commands in the BroadWorks CLI
    Affected if CLI access is enabled and reachable (the vulnerability exists in the operating system CLI)
  4. Audit administrative accounts
    Use 'show admin users' or 'show administrator' commands to enumerate existing administrative accounts
    Affected if There are valid BroadWorks administrative accounts configured (the attacker needs valid admin privileges to exploit this flaw)

You are affected if you have any BroadWorks component running firmware version 23.0, 24.0, or 25.0 with the CLI interface enabled and administrative accounts present.

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 for CVE-2023-20210 once available, or implement strict CLI command whitelisting and monitor administrative account activity until a patch is deployed.

Fix this in Broadworks Application Delivery Platform Firmware 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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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-2023-20210 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