dbcve.org
Identity Services EngineApplication · Cisco

CVE-2025-20289

MEDIUM · 5.4 CVSS v3.1 Developing Published 2025-11-05
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 3.1.0 or later.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable

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
Multiple vulnerabilities in the web-based management interface of Cisco ISE and Cisco ISE-PIC could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to conduct a reflected XSS attack against a user of the interface. These vulnerabilities are due to insufficient validation of user-supplied input by the web-based management interface of an affected system. An attacker could exploit these vulnerabilities by injecting malicious code into specific pages of the interface. 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. To exploit these vulnerabilities, the attacker must have at least a low-privileged account 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 · low confidence
Developing — this CVE was published recently and its authoritative NVD entry is still being established, so we're holding a technical summary until the source data settles rather than publish something unreliable. Re-checking after 2026-07-31.

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
Identity Services EngineApplication
Affected:<= 3.1.0= 3.2.0= 3.3.0= 3.4.0

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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 3.1.0
Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Cisco ISE version 3.4.1 or later (or the latest available 3.x release)

  1. 1. Verify current Cisco ISE version by navigating to Administration > System > Licensing > Software Version in the ISE admin GUI
  2. 2. Download the fixed software version from Cisco.com or the Cisco Software Download center
  3. 3. Schedule a maintenance window as upgrade will require system downtime
  4. 4. Back up the ISE configuration before proceeding with upgrade
  5. 5. Follow Cisco ISE upgrade documentation: navigate to Administration > System > Upgrade > Software Upgrade
  6. 6. Select the downloaded upgrade package and initiate the upgrade process
  7. 7. Allow the upgrade to complete fully and verify the system comes up successfully
  8. 8. After upgrade, verify the vulnerability is resolved by checking the Cisco ISE admin interface
Caveat Standard Cisco ISE upgrade considerations apply - review release notes for migration path from older versions; ensure compatibility with connected devices and integration points

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

We can identify the exact fixed release, upgrade, and verify it in staging — typical engagement from $900. Get the upgrade done

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-20289 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2025-20289 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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