Cisco Nexus 3000 and 9000 Series Switches SFTP Server File Access Vulnerability

A vulnerability in the SFTP server implementation for Cisco Nexus 3000 Series Switches and 9000 Series Switches in standalone NX-OS mode could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to download or overwrite files from the underlying operating system of an affected device.

This vulnerability is due to a logic error when verifying the user role when an SFTP connection is opened to an affected device. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by connecting and authenticating via SFTP as a valid, non-administrator user. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to read or overwrite files from the underlying operating system with the privileges of the authenticated user.

Cisco has released software updates that address this vulnerability. There are workarounds that address this vulnerability.

This advisory is available at the following link:
https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-nxos-sftp-xVAp5Hfd [“https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-nxos-sftp-xVAp5Hfd”]

This advisory is part of the August 2023 Cisco FXOS and NX-OS Software Security Advisory Bundled Publication. For a complete list of the advisories and links to them, see Cisco Event Response: August 2023 Semiannual Cisco FXOS and NX-OS Software Security Advisory Bundled Publication [“https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/viewErp.x?alertId=ERP-75058”].