CVE-2025-20198 A vulnerability in the CLI of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker with privilege level 15…

Description

A vulnerability in the CLI of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker with privilege level 15 to elevate privileges to root on the underlying operating system of an affected device. This vulnerability is due to insufficient input validation when processing specific configuration commands. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by including crafted input in specific configuration commands. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to elevate privileges to root on the underlying operating system of an affected device. The security impact rating (SIR) of this advisory has been raised to High because an attacker could gain access to the underlying operating system of the affected device and perform potentially undetected actions. Note: The attacker must have privileges to enter configuration mode on the affected device. This is usually referred to as privilege level 15.

Exploitable with local access to the machine, with an administrator account and without any user action; the impact on data or service is limited.

Attack vector

Local

Attack complexity

Low

Privileges required

High

Interaction

None

Scope

Changed

Confidentiality

Low

Integrity

Low

Availability

None

Affected products and versions