A vulnerability in the Bash shell implementation for Cisco NX-OS Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to escalate their privilege level by executing commands authorized to other user roles. The attacker must authenticate with valid user credentials.
The vulnerability is due to the incorrect implementation of a Bash shell command that allows role-based access control (RBAC) to be bypassed. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by authenticating to the device and entering a crafted command at the Bash prompt. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to escalate their privilege level by executing commands that should be restricted to other roles. For example, a dev-ops user could escalate their privilege level to admin with a successful exploit of this vulnerability.
Cisco has released software updates that address this vulnerability. There are no workarounds that address this vulnerability.
This advisory is available at the following link:
https://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-20190306-nx-os-bash-escal
This advisory is part of the March 2019 Cisco FXOS and NX-OS Software Security Advisory Bundled Publication, which includes 25 Cisco Security Advisories that describe 26 vulnerabilities. For a complete list of the advisories and links to them, see Cisco Event Response: March 2019 Cisco FXOS and NX-OS Software Security Advisory Bundled Publication.
Security Impact Rating: High
CVE: CVE-2019-1593