Cyber Resilience

CVE-2023-20889

RCE in Vmware Vrealize Network Insight 6.2.0 – 6.10.0

High EPSSRCECommand Injection
Published
07 June 2023
Modified
07 January 2025
Patch / advisory
View advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 7.5
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
EPSS Score 0.79 99.6th percentile
Risk Priority 83 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2023-20889 is a high-severity Command Injection (CWE-77) vulnerability in Vmware Vrealize Network Insight. Its CVSS base score is 7.5 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Command and Scripting Interpreter (T1059); ranked in the top 0.4% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

VMware Aria Operations for Networks contains an information disclosure vulnerability arising from a command injection flaw, identified as CVE-2023-20889. The issue affects the network management product and carries a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.5 along with CWE-77 classification for improper neutralization of special elements used in a command.

An unauthenticated attacker with network access can exploit the flaw to execute injected commands and obtain sensitive information from the system, without needing user interaction or elevated privileges.

The issue is documented in VMware security advisory VMSA-2023-0012, which outlines remediation guidance and patch availability for affected installations. The associated EPSS score stands at 0.8963 with a recorded peak of 0.9023.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

A05:2025 Injection

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

Aria Operations for Networks contains an information disclosure vulnerability. A malicious actor with network access to VMware Aria Operations for Networks may be able to perform a command injection attack resulting in information disclosure.

CWE(s)
CWE-77

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1059 Command and Scripting Interpreter Execution
Adversaries may abuse command and script interpreters to execute commands, scripts, or binaries.
attack.mitre.org →
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.001 PowerShell Execution
Adversaries may abuse PowerShell commands and scripts for execution.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.003 Windows Command Shell Execution
Adversaries may abuse the Windows command shell for execution.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.004 Unix Shell Execution
Adversaries may abuse Unix shell commands and scripts for execution.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.008 Network Device CLI Execution
Adversaries may abuse scripting or built-in command line interpreters (CLI) on network devices to execute malicious command and payloads.
attack.mitre.org →
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2023-20888Same product: Vmware Vrealize Network Insight
CVE-2024-38831Same vendor: Vmware
CVE-2026-22719Same vendor: Vmware
CVE-2023-20865Same vendor: Vmware
CVE-2023-20887Same vendor: Vmware
CVE-2024-53672Shared CWE-77
CVE-2024-38228Shared CWE-77
CVE-2023-1389Shared CWE-77
CVE-2023-46409Shared CWE-77
CVE-2023-37469Shared CWE-77

Affected Assets

vmware
vrealize network insight
6.2.0 — 6.10.0

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)
  • V1.2.3
  • V1.2.5
  • V1.2.8
  • V1.2.9

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 neutralization that prevent command injection.

DE.CM-09 partial match
prevents

Runtime monitoring of software and data can detect anomalous command execution resulting from injection.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Identifying recorded vulnerabilities enables remediation of command-injection flaws before exploitation.

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.

A.8.28 Secure coding mostly match
prevents

Secure coding standards require proper escaping and parameterization of commands, directly eliminating CWE-77.

A.8.29 Security testing in development and acceptance mostly match
finds

Security testing in development catches command-injection vulnerabilities before release.

A.8.25 Secure development life cycle partial match
prevents

Secure development life cycle mandates input validation and command construction practices that directly prevent command injection.

A.8.26 Application security requirements partial match
prevents

Application security requirements explicitly call for controls against injection flaws including command injection.

A.8.27 Secure system architecture and engineering principles partial match
prevents

Secure architecture principles reduce the attack surface but do not prescribe the specific neutralization techniques needed.

A.8.31 Separation of development, test and production environments none match
none

Environment separation limits the blast radius of an exploited command injection but does not prevent the flaw itself.

References