JunosOperating system · Juniper

CVE-2023-44182

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-10-13

Fix available

A fix is available. Upgrade to 20.4 / 21.4 or later.

See remediation →

94/100

Remediation priority · Urgent

Remotely reachable Zero-click

Official description

NVD · unedited

An Unchecked Return Value vulnerability in the user interfaces to the Juniper Networks Junos OS and Junos OS Evolved, the CLI, the XML API, the XML Management Protocol, the NETCONF Management Protocol, the gNMI interfaces, and the J-Web User Interfaces causes unintended effects such as demotion or elevation of privileges associated with an operators actions to occur. Multiple scenarios may occur; for example: privilege escalation over the device or another account, access to files that should not otherwise be accessible, files not being accessible where they should be accessible, code expected to run as non-root may run as root, and so forth. This issue affects: Juniper Networks Junos OS * All versions prior to 20.4R3-S7; * 21.1 versions prior to 21.1R3-S5; * 21.2 versions prior to 21.2R3-S5; * 21.3 versions prior to 21.3R3-S4; * 21.4 versions prior to 21.4R3-S3; * 22.1 versions prior to 22.1R3-S2; * 22.2 versions prior to 22.2R2-S2, 22.2R3; * 22.3 versions prior to 22.3R1-S2, 22.3R2. Juniper Networks Junos OS Evolved * All versions prior to 21.4R3-S3-EVO; * 22.1-EVO version 22.1R1-EVO and later versions prior to 22.2R2-S2-EVO, 22.2R3-EVO; * 22.3-EVO versions prior to 22.3R1-S2-EVO, 22.3R2-EVO.

Technical summary

dbcve analysis · high confidence

An unchecked return value vulnerability in multiple Juniper Junos OS and Junos OS Evolved management interfaces (CLI, XML API, NETCONF, gNMI, J-Web) allows privilege escalation, unauthorized file access, and unintended privilege-related effects such as running code as root instead of non-root user.

MitigationUpgrade Junos OS or Junos OS Evolved to one of the fixed versions specified in the advisory (e.g., 22.2R2-S2, 22.3R2, or later) to remediate this vulnerability.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions

NVD · CPE data

JunosOperating system

Affected:< 20.4= 20.4= 21.1= 21.2= 21.3= 21.4= 22.1= 22.2= 22.3

Junos Os EvolvedOperating system

Affected:< 21.4= 21.4= 22.1= 22.2= 22.3

CVSS breakdown

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?

dbcve checks

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

Identify Junos product type

Run 'show version' or 'show version detail' to confirm if the device runs Junos OS or Junos OS Evolved

Affected if The device is running Junos OS or Junos OS Evolved and the version matches the affected ranges below
Check installed Junos OS version

Execute 'show version' and note the exact version number (e.g., 21.4R3, 22.2R1, etc.)

Affected if Version is < 20.4, = 20.4, = 21.1, = 21.2, = 21.3, = 21.4, = 22.1, = 22.2, or = 22.3 for Junos OS
Check installed Junos OS Evolved version

Execute 'show version' and note the exact version number for Junos OS Evolved

Affected if Version is < 21.4, = 21.4, = 22.1, = 22.2, or = 22.3 for Junos OS Evolved
Verify management interfaces are accessible

Confirm that any of these interfaces are enabled and reachable: CLI, XML API, NETCONF (port 830), gNMI (port 57400), or J-Web

Affected if Any management interface is enabled and the version falls within the affected ranges in steps 2 or 3

You are affected if the device runs Junos OS or Junos OS Evolved with a version matching the affected list and has management interfaces enabled.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Remediation

dbcve · scoped

Upgrade available Upgrade to 20.4 / 21.4 or later

Fixed in 20.421.4

Interim mitigation

Upgrade Junos OS or Junos OS Evolved to one of the fixed versions specified in the advisory (e.g., 22.2R2-S2, 22.3R2, or later) to remediate this vulnerability.

Recommended fix High confidence

Junos OS: 20.4R3-S7, 21.1R3-S5, 21.2R3-S5, 21.3R3-S4, 21.4R3-S3, 22.1R3-S2, 22.2R3, 22.3R2 | Junos OS Evolved: 21.4R3-S3-EVO, 22.2R3-EVO, 22.3R2-EVO

1. Identify the currently installed Junos OS or Junos OS Evolved version using 'show version' command
2. Based on the installed version branch, plan upgrade to the minimum fixed release: For 20.4 branch upgrade to 20.4R3-S7, for 21.1 branch upgrade to 21.1R3-S5, for 21.2 branch upgrade to 21.2R3-S5, for 21.3 branch upgrade to 21.3R3-S4, for 21.4 branch upgrade to 21.4R3-S3, for 22.1 branch upgrade to 22.1R3-S2, for 22.2 branch upgrade to 22.2R3 (or 22.2R2-S2), for 22.3 branch upgrade to 22.3R2 (or
3. For Junos OS Evolved: for 21.4-EVO upgrade to 21.4R3-S3-EVO, for 22.1-EVO/22.2-EVO upgrade to 22.2R3-EVO, for 22.3-EVO upgrade to 22.3R2-EVO
4. Download the appropriate upgrade package from the Juniper Networks support portal
5. Upload the software package to the device using SCP or FTP
6. Run 'request system software add <package-name>' to install the upgrade
7. Reboot the device using 'request system reboot' after installation completes
8. After reboot, verify the new version is installed using 'show version' and confirm the fix is applied

Caveat Standard Junos upgrade precautions apply - review Junos upgrade guide for your specific hardware platform, ensure compatibility with existing configurations, and plan for appropriate maintenance window

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Junos Scoped from the published advisory

Consultation6.0 h
Implementation12.0 h
Testing10.0 h
Review / QA4.0 h

32.0 hours of engineering $5,580

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Scan for this in your stack

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References

Primary sources

supportportal.juniper.netVendor Advisory
www.juniper.netTechnical Description
www.juniper.netTechnical Description
nvd.nist.govNVD record

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2023-44182 in production — separate from our analysis above.

Notes0 Guidelines

Know something about CVE-2023-44182?

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

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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

At a glance

A fix existsUpgrade to 20.4 / 21.4 or later

Severity 8.8 High

Exploit likelihood EPSS, next 30 days 0.6%

Affects: Junos

Remediation

A high-priority fix

Fix this in Junos 32 hrs · Moderate

Typical engagement from $5,580

Get a fix See the full breakdown ↓

A high-priority vulnerability. Send your environment and a specialist will scope CVE-2023-44182 and return a fixed quote and timeline.

You’ll deal with our team directly and deploy the reviewed fix to staging first — never straight to production.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Check your environment

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.

Scan for this in your stack

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Practitioner notes

No notes yet

Official description

Technical summary

Affected products & versions

CVSS breakdown

Am I affected?

Remediation

References