Cyber Resilience

CVE-2024-20463

Auth Bypass in Cisco Ata 191 Firmware ≤ 12.0.2

Published
16 October 2024
Modified
31 October 2024
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 5.4
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:L
EPSS Score 0.0036 29th percentile
Risk Priority 46 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2024-20463 is a medium-severity Authentication Bypass by Primary Weakness (CWE-305) vulnerability in Cisco Ata 191 Firmware. Its CVSS base score is 5.4 (Medium).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked at the 29th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to AC-24 (Access Control Decisions) and AC-25 (Reference Monitor) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

A vulnerability in the web-based management interface of Cisco ATA 190 Series Analog Telephone Adapter firmware could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to modify the configuration or reboot an affected device. This vulnerability is due to the HTTP server allowing…

more

state changes in GET requests. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a malicious request to the web-based management interface on an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to make limited modifications to the configuration or reboot the device, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition. 

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to elevate privileges.
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.
T1210 Exploitation of Remote Services Lateral Movement
Adversaries may exploit remote services to gain unauthorized access to internal systems once inside of a network.
T1548 Abuse Elevation Control Mechanism Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may circumvent mechanisms designed to control privilege elevation to gain higher-level permissions.
T1556 Modify Authentication Process Defense Impairment
Adversaries may modify authentication mechanisms and processes to access user credentials or enable otherwise unwarranted access to accounts.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2023-20064Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2025-20362Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2024-20442Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2024-20477Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2025-20301Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2024-20355Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2025-20302Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2017-6622Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2023-20252Same vendor: Cisco
CVE-2025-20125Same vendor: Cisco

Affected Assets

cisco
ata 191 firmware
≤ 12.0.2 · ≤ 11.2.5
cisco
ata 192 firmware
≤ 11.2.5

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)
  • 10 hardening rules · 6 OS baselines
Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V6.4.3
  • V7.2.4

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

AC-3 directly requires enforcement of authorization decisions on every access request, structurally eliminating missing authorization checks.

AC-24 mandates that access control decisions are applied to each request, preventing bypass of authorization logic.

AC-25 requires a tamperproof, always-invoked reference monitor that ensures authorization checks cannot be omitted.

Requires unique identification and authentication of users, structurally blocking bypass of the mechanism.

Requires unique identification and authentication of non-organizational users, blocking bypass paths.

AC-6 reduces the set of actions reachable without proper authorization, limiting blast radius of missing checks.

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.AA-05 full match
prevents

Explicitly requires defining, enforcing, and reviewing authorizations and least privilege, directly preventing missing authorization checks.

PR.PS-06 full match
prevents

Secure development practices throughout the SDLC prevent the primary weaknesses that enable authentication bypass.

PR.AA-03 mostly match
prevents

Strong authentication mechanisms and policy enforcement directly reduce bypass opportunities arising from implementation flaws.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Identifying and recording vulnerabilities catches the primary weaknesses that allow authentication bypass.

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.

finds

Security testing can detect authentication bypass conditions before deployment.

prevents

Requiring authentication and credentials before any access occurs eliminates the absence of authorization checks that would otherwise allow an unauthenticated actor to reach protected resources.

prevents

Requiring formal authorization of every access request before rights are granted ensures that checks for required permissions are performed, preventing missing authorization checks from being introduced.

prevents

Mandatory authorization checks and central records of granted rights ensure that every access attempt is preceded by an explicit decision rather than relying on missing checks.

mitigates

Segregating the approval of access rights from their implementation provides an independent check that reduces the impact of missing authorization checks in the resulting system configuration.

finds

By requiring competent outsiders to verify that every function enforces the need-to-know principle, the control lowers the likelihood that missing authorization checks persist undetected.

Hardening callouts derived

Configuration rules from DISA STIG baselines that bear on weaknesses of the type cited by this CVE. Each rule is shown with the relationship its mapping actually records, against the CWE it was authored against. Derived via CVE→CWE over `controls_xwalks` (authoritative rows only; rows rated `none` are excluded).

Oracle Linux 8 (2 rules)
  • V-248581 OL 8 must require users to provide a password for privilege escalation. prevents CWE-862
  • V-252656 The OL 8 operating system must not be configured to bypass password requirements for privilege escalation. prevents CWE-862
RHEL 7 (2 rules)
  • V-251704 The Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system must not be configured to bypass password requirements for privilege escalation. prevents CWE-862
  • V-204429 The Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system must be configured so that users must provide a password for privilege escalation. prevents CWE-862
Ubuntu 22.04 (1 rule)
  • V-260470 Ubuntu 22.04 LTS, when booted, must require authentication upon booting into single-user and maintenance modes. prevents CWE-305
Ubuntu 24.04 (1 rule)
  • V-270675 Ubuntu 24.04 LTS when booted must require authentication upon booting into single-user and maintenance modes. prevents CWE-305

References