CVE intelligence and bounded remediation

CVE-2023-20034 — Cisco Sd-Wan security vulnerability

High CVSS 7.5

Vulnerability in the Elasticsearch database used in the of Cisco SD-WAN vManage software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to access the Elasticsearch configuration database of an affected device with the privileges of the elasticsearch user. These vulnerability is due to the presence of a static username and password configured on the vManage. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted HTTP request to a reachable vManage on port 9200. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to view the Elasticsearch database content. There are workarounds that address this vulnerability.

Severity
High
CVSS
7.5 (3.1)
Published
2023-09-27
CISA KEV
Not currently listed
Ecosystem
software/application
Weaknesses
CWE-798

Affected products

  • cisco / sd-wan
  • cisco / sd-wan / 20.6
  • cisco / sd-wan / 20.7

Matched remediation archetype

Authentication bypass and missing authentication

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Check exposure

  • Map every affected endpoint and protocol path, including alternate ports, legacy routes, recovery flows, service accounts, and machine-to-machine access.
  • Confirm which deployments enable the affected authentication mode and whether the interface is reachable from untrusted networks.
  • Review session, token, credential, and proxy trust configuration without attempting account takeover.

Remediate safely

  • Apply the supported fix and centralize fail-closed authentication before protected request handling.
  • Remove default or embedded credentials, rotate affected secrets and sessions, and bind authentication decisions to the intended audience and channel.
  • Add negative tests for alternate routes, malformed or absent credentials, recovery flows, and proxy-derived identity.

Authoritative sources

Complete CVE record and remediation plan

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