CVE-2025-20338
MEDIUMDescription
A vulnerability in the CLI of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker with administrative privileges to execute arbitrary commands as root on the underlying operating system of an affected device. This vulnerability is due to insufficient validation of user arguments that are passed to specific CLI commands. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by logging in to the device CLI with valid administrative (level 15) credentials and using crafted commands at the CLI prompt. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary commands as root.
How to fix
No published remediation has been found for this vulnerability's affected products yet.
Mitigation guidance may be in the linked vendor advisories in the References section below.
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CVSS v3 Vector
Exploitability
Impact
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
Exploit Intelligence
Low risk: more likely to be exploited than 5% of all known CVEs.
References
Related Vulnerabilities
Other CWE-141 vulnerabilities, ordered by exploit likelihood. View all
| CVE | Severity | CVSS | EPSS | Exploited | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2020-7868 | Critical | 9.6 | 2.7% | - | - |
| CVE-2022-29873 | Critical | 9.8 | 1.9% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2023-28815 | Critical | 9.8 | 1.5% | - | - |
| CVE-2022-29872 | High | 8.8 | 1.4% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2022-41665 | Critical | 9.8 | 1.1% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2024-0840 | High | 8.8 | 0.9% | - | - |
Common questions
How do I fix CVE-2025-20338?
No published fix for CVE-2025-20338 has been found yet. Check the linked vendor advisories for guidance as it becomes available.
Is CVE-2025-20338 being actively exploited?
Not that we know of. CVE-2025-20338 is not in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. Its EPSS score of 0.15% is the estimated probability that it will be exploited in the next 30 days. That is higher than 5% of all scored CVEs.
How severe is CVE-2025-20338?
CVE-2025-20338 has a CVSS v3 base score of 6.0, rated medium. CVSS rates the technical impact if the vulnerability is exploited, not how likely that is, so weigh it alongside the exploit-prediction score when you decide what to patch first.
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This product uses NVD data but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS scores courtesy of FIRST.org (https://www.first.org/epss). Source: CISA KEV Catalog. Data as of 2025-11-14.