Cisco IM and Presence Service Leaked Encrypted Passwords Privilege Escalation Vulnerability

A vulnerability in the Cisco IM and Presence Service could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to gain elevated privileges.

The vulnerability is due to improper web page restrictions imposed by the affected software. An authenticated, remote attacker could exploit this vulnerability to access encrypted passwords, which could result in privilege escalation. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system.

Cisco has confirmed the vulnerability and released software updates.

To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker must authenticate to the targeted device. This access requirement reduces the likelihood of a successful exploit.

Cisco indicates through the CVSS score that functional exploit code exists; however, the code is not known to be publicly available.