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CVE-2025-20124 Cisco Identity Services Engine

Affected softwareCisco Identity Services Engine
Severity9.9 Critical CVSS 3.1 2 scores
WeaknessDeserialization of untrusted data (CWE-502)
Published5 Feb 2025
Updated17 Jun 2026

Description

A vulnerability in an API of Cisco ISE could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary commands as the root user on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to insecure deserialization of user-supplied Java byte streams by the affected software. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted serialized Java object to an affected API. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the device and elevate privileges. Note: To successfully exploit this vulnerability, the attacker must have valid read-only administrative credentials. In a single-node deployment, new devices will not be able to authenticate during the reload time.

Exploitation status

Working exploit published

A reviewed exploit catalogue lists ready-to-run exploit code for this CVE.

  • CISA KEV not listed
  • VulnCheck KEV not listed
  • CISA Vulnrichment exploitation: none
  • Indexed PoC 1 indexed Published artifacts you can open, in Exploit-DB; first seen 2025-08-11.
  • EPSS 19% chance in 30 days A model's forecast, not a report of exploitation. Higher than 97% of all scored CVEs.
IndexArtifactStarsFirst seen
Exploit-DB Cisco ISE 3.0 - Remote Code Execution (RCE) 2025-08-11

Waratek protection

Outside Waratek scope

A Java vulnerability, but not one Waratek protects. It affects only Java on a user's desktop (applets, Web Start, JavaFX, the installer), sits in a product the Waratek agent can't be installed into, or is in a package we don't expect in business applications. The decision below says which.

  • Protection none
  • Action not pursued none
  • Review automated Upstream data
  • Record active
Decided by The only affected product being a sealed appliance image, where Java runs but no -javaagent can be attached
Finding This CVE names only products the Waratek agent cannot be installed into (cisco/identity_services_engine). They ship as sealed appliance images or as native code with no application JVM, so there is no start-up line to add -javaagent to. The vulnerability may well be a Java one; it is permanently out of ARMR's reach rather than outside its subject.

CVSS

9.9 CRITICAL v3.1 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:H/A:H 2 metrics

We show the highest score from the newest CVSS version. Scores from different versions can't be compared, and the first score listed is sometimes a 0.0 placeholder.

VersionScoreBandVectorAssignerType
CVSS 3.1 9.9 CRITICAL CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:H/A:H psirt@cisco.com Secondary published
CVSS 3.1 7.2 HIGH CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H NVD Primary

Affected software and releases

Products and versions

1 product, 22 version entries
SourceVendorProductSchemeAffected versions
nvd cisco identity services engine generic < 3.1 · 3.1.0 · 3.1.0:patch1 · 3.1.0:patch2 · 3.1.0:patch3 · 3.1.0:patch4 · 3.1.0:patch5 · 3.1.0:patch6 · 3.1.0:patch7 · 3.1.0:patch8 · 3.1.0:patch9 · 3.2.0 · 3.2.0:patch1 · 3.2.0:patch2 · 3.2.0:patch3 · 3.2.0:patch4 · 3.2.0:patch5 · 3.2.0:patch6 · 3.3.0 · 3.3.0:patch1 · 3.3.0:patch2 · 3.3.0:patch3

References

URLTags
https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-ise-multivuls-FTW9AOXF Vendor Advisory

Timeline

Published2025-02-05By the CVE Program.
NVD record modified2026-06-17NVD's own last-modified date for this record.