Cyber Resilience

CVE-2023-20098

Path Traversal in Cisco Catalyst Sd-Wan Manager 20.11

Published
09 May 2023
Modified
21 November 2024
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 4.4
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
EPSS Score 0.0051 41th percentile
Risk Priority 35 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2023-20098 is a medium-severity Path Traversal: '../filedir' (CWE-24) vulnerability in Cisco Catalyst Sd-Wan Manager. Its CVSS base score is 4.4 (Medium).

Operationally, ranked at the 41th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

A vulnerability in the CLI of Cisco SDWAN vManage Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to delete arbitrary files. This vulnerability is due to improper filtering of directory traversal character sequences within system commands. An attacker with administrative privileges…

more

could exploit this vulnerability by running a system command containing directory traversal character sequences to target an arbitrary file. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to delete arbitrary files from the system, including files owned by root.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2025-20187Same product: Cisco Catalyst Sd-Wan Manager
CVE-2023-20166Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2023-20167Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2026-20148Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2025-20277Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2025-20344Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2024-20532Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2024-20528Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2024-20529Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2015-0666Same vendor: Cisco

Affected Assets

cisco
catalyst sd-wan manager
20.11
cisco
sd-wan vmanage
≤ 20.9.1

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V5.3.2

Likely Mitigating Controls AI

Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.

addresses: CWE-22

Validates pathnames and filenames to prevent traversal outside intended directories.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices directly require input validation and path sanitization that prevent ../ traversal.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Patching/maintenance can remediate known path-traversal flaws in deployed software (partial prevention of exploitability) but does nothing to stop the coding defect from being introduced in the first place.

PR.AA-05 none match
prevents

PR.AA-05 defines and reviews access policies but does not address code-level pathname neutralization, so neither direction prevents CWE-22.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

prevents

Secure coding standards require neutralizing ../ sequences and canonicalizing paths before file operations.

detects

Security testing in development catches path-traversal flaws before release.

prevents

Secure SDLC mandates input validation and path canonicalization that directly block ../ traversal.

prevents

Application security requirements explicitly call for controls against path traversal in file-handling functions.

prevents

Secure architecture principles reduce attack surface but do not prescribe the specific coding fix.

mitigates

Information access restriction limits which files can be reached, mitigating impact of traversal.

References