CVE-2025-20269VulnerabilityPublished 20 Aug 2025

CVE-2025-20269: Cisco Evolved Programmable Network Manager (EPNM) · External Control of File Name or Path

Affects Cisco Evolved Programmable Network Manager (EPNM)Source CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 6.5 Medium.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 06:26 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

6.5Medium

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

EPSS: 0.4% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 36% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

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

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: Low
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: None
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: Low: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide basic user capabilities that could normally affect only settings and files owned by a user. Alternatively, an attacker with Low privileges may have the ability to cause an impact only to non-sensitive resources.
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: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within 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 20 Aug 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 2026-10-26.

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 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 Evolved Programmable Network Manager (EPNM)	Affected =7.0.0 =7.1.1 =7.1.2.1 =7.1.3 =7.1.2 =7.0.1.2 =7.0.1.1 =7.0.1 =7.1.0 =8.0.0 =8.0.0.1 =8.1.0 =8.0.1	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

1. Immediate application of vendor patches or updates once available is the most effective mitigation. 2. Restrict access to the Cisco EPNM web management interface to trusted networks and users only, using network segmentation and firewall rules to limit exposure. 3. Implement strong authentication mechanisms, including multi-factor authentication (MFA), to reduce the risk of credential compromise for low-privileged accounts. 4. Conduct regular audits of user accounts and permissions within Cisco EPNM to ensure least privilege principles are enforced. 5. Monitor network traffic and logs for unusual HTTP requests targeting the management interface that could indicate exploitation attempts. 6. Employ web application firewalls (WAFs) with custom rules to detect and block suspicious path traversal or file retrieval attempts. 7. Educate administrators and users on phishing and social engineering risks to reduce the likelihood of credential theft. 8. Consider deploying intrusion detection/prevention systems (IDS/IPS) tuned to detect exploitation patterns related to this vulnerability.

Description

A vulnerability in the web-based management interface of Cisco Evolved Programmable Network Manager (EPNM) and Cisco Prime Infrastructure could allow an authenticated, low-privileged, remote attacker to retrieve arbitrary files from the underlying file system on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to insufficient input validation for specific HTTP requests. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending crafted HTTP requests to the web-based management interface on an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to access sensitive files from the affected device.

Impact

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to the confidentiality of sensitive network management data. Cisco EPNM is widely used by large enterprises and telecommunications providers to manage complex network infrastructures. Unauthorized access to configuration files or credentials could facilitate further attacks, including lateral movement within the network or disruption of network services through indirect means. Given the critical role of network management systems, exposure of sensitive files could undermine operational security and compliance with data protection regulations such as GDPR. The medium severity score suggests that while the vulnerability does not directly impact system integrity or availability, the confidentiality breach alone could have serious repercussions, especially for organizations managing critical infrastructure or handling sensitive customer data. The requirement for authentication limits the attack surface but does not eliminate risk, as low-privileged credentials could be obtained through phishing or insider threats. Therefore, European entities using affected Cisco EPNM versions should consider this vulnerability a priority for remediation to prevent potential data breaches and maintain regulatory compliance.

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 20 Aug 2025, 16:49 UTC

Technical details

References

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