VulnerabilityPublished 4 Jun 2025Updated 23 Jun 2025

CVE-2025-20130: Cisco Identity Services Engine Software · Improper Access Control

Affects Cisco Identity Services Engine SoftwareSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 4.9 Medium.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 10:12 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

4.9Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.6% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 49% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

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

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: High
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: None
Integrity: High
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: High: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide significant (e.g., administrative) control over the vulnerable component that could affect component-wide settings and files.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: None: There is no loss of confidentiality within the impacted component.
Integrity: High: There is a total loss of integrity, or a complete loss of protection. For example, the attacker is able to modify any/all files protected by the impacted component. Alternatively, only some files can be modified, but malicious modification would present a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 4 Jun 2025
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Cisco Cisco Identity Services Engine Software	Affected 2.7.0 – 3.3.0 5 affected builds	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

Immediate patching: Organizations should prioritize applying Cisco's security updates or patches once available for all affected ISE versions to remediate the improper access control flaw.
Restrict administrative access: Limit administrative privileges strictly to trusted personnel and enforce strong authentication mechanisms such as multi-factor authentication (MFA) to reduce the risk of credential compromise.
Monitor API usage: Implement detailed logging and monitoring of API endpoints, especially file upload functions, to detect anomalous or unauthorized file upload attempts.
Network segmentation: Isolate Cisco ISE servers within dedicated network segments with strict access controls to minimize exposure to potential attackers.
Credential hygiene: Regularly audit and rotate administrative credentials, and employ least privilege principles to reduce the risk of privilege escalation.
Incident response readiness: Prepare for potential exploitation scenarios by developing and testing response plans focused on detecting and mitigating unauthorized file uploads or system integrity violations.
Vendor communication: Maintain active communication with Cisco for updates, advisories, and best practices related to this vulnerability and related security issues.

Description

A vulnerability in the API of Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) and Cisco ISE Passive Identity Connector (ISE-PIC) could allow an authenticated, remote attacker with administrative privileges to upload files to an affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper validation of the file copy function. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted file upload request to a specific API endpoint. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to upload arbitrary files to an affected system.

Impact

For European organizations, the impact of this vulnerability can be substantial, especially for enterprises and service providers relying on Cisco ISE for network access control, policy enforcement, and identity management. Successful exploitation could allow attackers to upload malicious files that might alter system behavior, introduce backdoors, or disrupt policy enforcement, potentially leading to lateral movement within the network or bypassing security controls. Given Cisco ISE's role in managing network access and device posture, integrity compromise could undermine the overall security posture, risking unauthorized access to sensitive resources. The requirement for administrative credentials limits the attack surface to insiders or attackers who have already compromised privileged accounts, but this also means that insider threats or credential theft attacks could leverage this vulnerability to escalate their impact. Additionally, the lack of impact on confidentiality and availability reduces the risk of data leakage or denial of service but does not diminish the threat to system integrity and trustworthiness of network access controls.

References

sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-ise-file-upload-P4M8vwXY (opens in a new tab)

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 6 Jul 2025, 10:26 UTC

Technical details

References

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