CVE-2023-20065

Vulnerability

This privilege escalation vulnerability resides in the Cisco IOx application hosting subsystem of Cisco IOS XE Software [1]. The bug stems from insufficient restrictions on hosted applications within the IOx environment. An authenticated local attacker who can log into the device can escape the Cisco IOx application container. The exact set of affected versions is not enumerated in the available references, but the advisory covers Cisco IOS XE Software releases that include the IOx application hosting feature [1].

Exploitation

To exploit the vulnerability, an attacker must have local access to an affected Cisco IOS XE device and must be authenticated with sufficient privileges to interact with the Cisco IOx application container [1]. The attacker then triggers a container escape by leveraging the inadequate security restrictions, allowing them to break out of the confined application environment [1].

Impact

Successful exploitation allows the attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system with root privileges [1]. This grants full control over the device, enabling an attacker to modify configuration, access sensitive data, disrupt operations, and potentially pivot to other network segments.

Mitigation

Cisco has released free software updates to address this vulnerability [1]. Customers with service contracts should obtain fixes through their usual update channels. Customers without service contracts or who purchase through third-party vendors should consult the Cisco Support and Downloads page or contact the Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC) [1]. No workarounds or mitigations other than upgrading are described in the available references.