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Secure Network AnalyticsApplication · Cisco

CVE-2025-20257

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-05-21
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
71/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 an API subsystem of Cisco Secure Network Analytics Manager and Cisco Secure Network Analytics Virtual Manager could allow an authenticated, remote attacker with low privileges to generate fraudulent findings that are used to generate alarms and alerts on an affected product. Thi vulnerability is due to insufficient authorization enforcement on a specific API. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by authenticating as a low-privileged user and performing API calls with crafted input. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to obfuscate legitimate findings in analytics reports or create false indications with alarms and alerts on an 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

This is an API authorization bypass vulnerability in Cisco Secure Network Analytics where low-privileged users can manipulate the API to create fraudulent security findings, obfuscate legitimate data, or trigger false alarms and alerts. The root cause is insufficient authorization enforcement on specific API endpoints, allowing authenticated users to perform actions beyond their privilege level.

MitigationApply the vendor patch when available. In the interim, monitor API activity logs for unusual patterns from low-privileged accounts and consider restricting API access to trusted users or networks.

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
Secure Network AnalyticsApplication
Affected:= 7.5.2

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
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/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 Cisco Secure Network Analytics version
    Run 'show version' from the appliance CLI or check the web UI under Administration > System > About
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 7.5.2
  2. Confirm API access is enabled
    Check the API configuration in the web UI under Administration > Integration > API Settings, or review if API endpoints are accessible on port 443
    Affected if API access is enabled and exposed
  3. Review user role assignments
    Check user accounts and their assigned roles under Administration > Users in the web UI. Identify accounts with 'Analyst', 'Operator', or non-admin roles
    Affected if Low-privileged users (non-admin) exist and have API access credentials
  4. Audit API activity logs
    Review API access logs under Monitoring > Logs > API Logs, looking for API calls from low-privileged users that modify findings, alerts, or sensor configurations
    Affected if API activity from low-privileged users includes POST, PUT, or DELETE operations on findings/alerts

You are affected if Cisco Secure Network Analytics version 7.5.2 is installed, the API is enabled, and low-privileged users have API access capabilities.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the vendor patch when available. In the interim, monitor API activity logs for unusual patterns from low-privileged accounts and consider restricting API access to trusted users or networks.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Upgrade to the latest stable release of Cisco Secure Network Analytics (latest 7.x release or later)

  1. 1. Log in to the Secure Network Analytics Manager or Virtual Manager console
  2. 2. Navigate to the Administration or System Settings section
  3. 3. Check the current software version to confirm it is 7.5.2
  4. 4. Download the latest available Cisco Secure Network Analytics release from Cisco.com or your authorized Cisco distributor
  5. 5. Follow the Cisco Secure Network Analytics upgrade documentation to install the fixed release
  6. 6. After upgrade, verify the new version is running and confirm the vulnerability is addressed
  7. 7. Test that low-privileged user accounts can no longer create fraudulent findings via the API
Caveat Review Cisco release notes for upgrade considerations; ensure proper backup before upgrading

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

Fix this in Secure Network Analytics Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,480
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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-2025-20257 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
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