A vulnerability in the web server authentication of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to crash the web server on the device. The vulnerability is due to insufficient input validation during authentication. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by entering unexpected characters during a valid authentication. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to crash the web server on the device, which must be manually recovered by disabling and re-enabling the web server. Cisco has released software updates that address this vulnerability. There are no workarounds that address this vulnerability. This advisory is available at the following link:https://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-WEB-UI-exNFmcPO
A vulnerability in the web server authentication of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to crash the web server on the device.
The vulnerability is due to insufficient input validation during authentication. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by entering unexpected characters during a valid authentication. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to crash the web server on the device, which must be manually recovered by disabling and re-enabling the web server.
Cisco has released software updates that address this vulnerability. There are no workarounds that address this vulnerability.
This advisory is available at the following link:
https://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-WEB-UI-exNFmcPO
At the time of publication, this vulnerability affected Cisco IOS XE Software releases earlier than releases 16.9.6, 16.12.2, or 17.1.1.
For information about which Cisco software releases are vulnerable, see the Fixed Software section of this advisory.
To determine whether the HTTP Server feature is enabled for a device, log in to the device and use the show running-config | include ip http server|secure|active command in the CLI to check for the presence of the ip http server command or the ip http secure-server command in the global configuration. If either command is present and configured, the HTTP Server feature is enabled for the device.
The following example shows the output of the show running-config | include ip http server|secure|active command for a device that has the HTTP Server feature enabled:
Router# show running-config | include ip http server|secure|active
ip http server
ip http secure-server
Note: The presence of either command or both commands in the device configuration indicates that the web UI feature is enabled.
If the ip http server command is present and the configuration also contains ip http active-session-modules none, the vulnerability is not exploitable over HTTP.
If the ip http secure-server command is present and the configuration also contains ip http secure-active-session-modules none, the vulnerability is not exploitable over HTTPS.
Only products listed in the Vulnerable Products section of this advisory are known to be affected by this vulnerability.
Cisco has confirmed that this vulnerability does not affect the following Cisco products:
When this vulnerability is exploited, only the web server functionality is broken. General traffic through the device is unaffected.
There are no workarounds that address this vulnerability.
Disabling the HTTP Server feature eliminates the attack vector for this vulnerability and may be a suitable mitigation until affected devices can be upgraded. To disable the HTTP Server feature, use the no ip http server or no ip http secure-server command in global configuration mode. If both the HTTP server and HTTPS server are in use, both commands are required to disable the HTTP Server feature.
When considering software upgrades, customers are advised to regularly consult the advisories for Cisco products, which are available from the Cisco Security Advisories page, to determine exposure and a complete upgrade solution.
In all cases, customers should ensure that the devices to be upgraded contain sufficient memory and confirm that current hardware and software configurations will continue to be supported properly by the new release. If the information is not clear, customers are advised to contact the Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC) or their contracted maintenance providers.
To help customers determine their exposure to vulnerabilities in Cisco IOS and IOS XE Software, Cisco provides the Cisco Software Checker to identify any Cisco Security Advisories that impact a specific software release and the earliest release that fixes the vulnerabilities described in each advisory (“First Fixed”). If applicable, the tool also returns the earliest release that fixes all the vulnerabilities described in all the advisories identified (“Combined First Fixed”).
Customers can use the Cisco Software Checker to search advisories in the following ways:
After initiating a search, customers can customize the search to include all Cisco Security Advisories, a specific advisory, or all advisories in the most recent bundled publication.
Customers can also use the following form to determine whether a release is affected by any Cisco Security Advisory by entering a Cisco IOS or IOS XE Software release-for example, 15.1(4)M2 or 3.13.8S:
By default, the Cisco Software Checker includes results only for vulnerabilities that have a Critical or High Security Impact Rating (SIR). To include results for Medium SIR vulnerabilities, customers can use the Cisco Software Checker on Cisco.com and check the Medium check box in the drop-down list under Impact Rating when customizing a search.
For a mapping of Cisco IOS XE Software releases to Cisco IOS Software releases, refer to the Cisco IOS XE 2 Release Notes, Cisco IOS XE 3S Release Notes, or Cisco IOS XE 3SG Release Notes, depending on the Cisco IOS XE Software release.
The Cisco Product Security Incident Response Team (PSIRT) is not aware of any public announcements or malicious use of the vulnerability that is described in this advisory.
This vulnerability was found during internal security testing.
To learn about Cisco security vulnerability disclosure policies and publications, see the Security Vulnerability Policy. This document also contains instructions for obtaining fixed software and receiving security vulnerability information from Cisco.
| Version | Description | Section | Status | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | Initial public release. | - | Final | 2020-SEP-23 |
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