CVE intelligence and bounded remediation

CVE-2017-12338 — Cisco Nx-Os security vulnerability

Medium CVSS 6

A vulnerability in the CLI of Cisco NX-OS System Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to read the contents of arbitrary files. The vulnerability is due to insufficient input validation for a specific CLI command. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by issuing a crafted command on the CLI. An exploit could allow the attacker unauthorized access to read arbitrary files on the underlying local file system. On products that support multiple virtual device contexts (VDCs), this vulnerability could allow an attacker to read files from any VDC. This vulnerability affects the following products running Cisco NX-OS System Software: Multilayer Director Switches, Nexus 2000 Series Fabric Extenders, Nexus 3000 Series Switches, Nexus 5000 Series Switches, Nexus 5500 Platform Switches, Nexus 5600 Platform Switches, Nexus 6000 Series Switches, Nexus 7000 Series Switches, Nexus 7700 Series Switches, Nexus 9000 Series Fabric Switches in Application Centric Infrastructure (ACI) mode, Nexus 9000 Series Switches in standalone NX-OS mode, Nexus 9500 R-Series Line Cards and Fabric Modules, Unified Computing System Manager. Cisco Bug IDs: CSCve51707, CSCve93961, CSCve93964, CSC…

Severity
Medium
CVSS
6 (3.0)
Published
2017-11-30
CISA KEV
Not currently listed
Ecosystem
software/application
Weaknesses
CWE-20

Affected products

  • cisco / nx-os / 8.0(1)
  • cisco / nx-os / 8.1(0)bd(0.20)
  • cisco / nx-os / 8.1(1)
  • cisco / unified_computing_system / 7.0(0)hsk(0.357)
  • cisco / lan_switch_software / 12.2(1.107)

Matched remediation archetype

Path traversal, unsafe upload, and file handling

This catalog composition supplies bounded fallback guidance. Explicitly reviewed curated workflows load with the complete record below.

Check exposure

  • Trace untrusted filenames, archive entries, URLs, and path segments into read, write, include, extraction, and upload operations.
  • Identify filesystem roots, mount permissions, symbolic-link behavior, archive handling, and whether uploaded content is web-accessible or executable.
  • Review canonicalization and containment checks across supported operating systems and storage backends.

Remediate safely

  • Generate server-side storage identifiers and resolve paths beneath a fixed root using filesystem-aware containment checks.
  • Reject absolute, parent-relative, alternate-separator, device, link, and archive entries that escape the intended root.
  • Store uploads outside executable or served paths, validate type and size, and use private atomic temporary files.

Authoritative sources

Complete CVE record and remediation plan

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