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CVE-2025-20177· NVD / CVE Program· CNA cisco

Cisco IOS XR Software Image Verification Bypass Vulnerability

A vulnerability in the boot process of Cisco IOS XR Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to bypass Cisco IOS XR image signature verification and load unverified software on an affected device. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker must have root-system privileges on the affected device. This vulnerability is due to incomplete validation of files in the boot verification process. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by manipulating the system configuration options to bypass some of the integrity checks that are performed during the boot process. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to control the boot configuration, which could enable them to bypass the requirement to run Cisco-signed images or alter the security properties of the running system. Note: Because exploitation of this vulnerability could result in the attacker bypassing Cisco image verification, Cisco has raised the Security Impact Rating (SIR) of this advisory from Medium to High.

MediumCVSS 6.7 · v3.1—No exploit No fix recorded
Published
Mar 12, 2025
Updated
Jun 17, 2026
EPSS
0.2% · 6th percentile
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Report tools

JSON

Action score

26

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
26 / 40 · 6.7 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
0 / 30 · 0.2%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
none
Automatable
no
Technical impact
total

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

CNA vs NVD score

NVD
—
CNA · cisco
6.7
NVD has not scored this yet; the score shown is the CNA’s.

The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.

Noroxi analysis

No Noroxi analysis for this record yet

We don't hand-write analysis for the hundreds of thousands of vulnerabilities in the database; that wouldn't be honest. For notable, high-impact vulnerabilities our team writes the mechanism, detection and remediation steps.

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Affected systems

VendorProduct
ciscoios xr
cisco8011-4g24y4h-i
cisco8101-32fh
cisco8101-32fh-o
cisco8101-32h-o
cisco8102-28fh-dpu-o
cisco8102-64h
cisco8102-64h-o
cisco8111-32eh-o
cisco8122-64eh-o
cisco8122-64ehf-o
cisco8201

and 48 more

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • cisco ios xrbefore 7.11.21
  • cisco ios xr24.2 and later · before 24.2.2
  • cisco ios xr24.3 and later · before 24.3.2
  • cisco ios xr24.4

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (cisco). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • Cisco Cisco IOS XR Software

    • 7.0.1, 7.0.0, 7.1.1, 7.0.90, 6.7.1, 7.0.2, 7.1.15, 7.2.0, 7.2.1, 7.1.2, 6.7.2, 7.0.11 … (+28)affected

Same product

cisco: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2020-3118Cisco IOS XR Software Cisco Discovery Protocol Format String VulnerabilityKEV
    69This week
  • CVE-2020-3569Cisco IOS XR Software DVMRP Memory Exhaustion VulnerabilitiesKEV
    65This week
  • CVE-2020-3566Cisco IOS XR Software DVMRP Memory Exhaustion VulnerabilityKEV
    65This week
  • CVE-2010-3035Cisco IOS XR 3.4.0 through 3.9.1, when BGP is enabled, does not properly handle unrecognized transitive attributes, which allows remote attaKEV
    62This week
  • CVE-2022-20821Cisco IOS XR Software Health Check Open Port VulnerabilityKEV
    59Plan
  • CVE-2009-2055Cisco IOS XR 3.4.0 through 3.8.1 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (session reset) via a BGP UPDATE message with an invalKEV
    54Plan

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

No fix version is recorded for this entry. Check the references for vendor advisories.

Exploit status

No known public exploit

No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

No dated events beyond publication.

EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it.
  • Administrator privileges are required.
  • No user action is required.
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality
high · data can be read
Integrity
high · data or configuration can be modified
Availability
high · the service can be disrupted
Attack vector
Local
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
High
Integrity impact
High
Availability impact
High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-274 · Improper Handling of Insufficient Privileges

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

nvd-secondary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.

Change log

No changes recorded on tracked fields yet. Score, KEV, exploit maturity and fix status changes appear here.

References

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records