CVE-2025-20124: Cisco Identity Services Engine Java Deserialization Vulnerability

Published Feb 5, 2025
·
Updated

A vulnerability in an API of Cisco ISE could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary commands as the root user on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to insecure deserialization of user-supplied Java byte streams by the affected software. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted serialized Java object to an affected API. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the device and elevate privileges. Note: To successfully exploit this vulnerability, the attacker must have valid read-only administrative credentials. In a single-node deployment, new devices will not be able to authenticate during the reload time.

Affected Software

23 affected components
Cisco Identity Services Engine
Cisco Identity Services Engine<3.1
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.1.0
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.1.0-patch1
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.1.0-patch2
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.1.0-patch3
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.1.0-patch4
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.1.0-patch5
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.1.0-patch6
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.1.0-patch7
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.1.0-patch8
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.1.0-patch9
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.2.0
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.2.0-patch1
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.2.0-patch2
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.2.0-patch3
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.2.0-patch4
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.2.0-patch5
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.2.0-patch6
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.3.0
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.3.0-patch1
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.3.0-patch2
Cisco Identity Services Engine=3.3.0-patch3

Event History

Feb 5, 2025
CVE Published
via MITRE·04:12 PM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·04:12 PM
DescriptionSeverityWeakness
Feb 6, 2025
News Published
via BleepingComputer·04:40 PM
News Published
via BleepingComputer·04:41 PM
Aug 11, 2025
Exploit Published
12:00 AM
Known Exploited
06:59 PM

Peer vulnerabilities

Found alongside the following vulnerabilities.

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Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is the severity of CVE-2025-20124?

The severity of CVE-2025-20124 is classified as critical due to the potential for remote code execution with root privileges.

2

How do I fix CVE-2025-20124?

To fix CVE-2025-20124, users should upgrade to the latest version of Cisco Identity Services Engine as outlined in Cisco's security advisory.

3

Who is affected by CVE-2025-20124?

CVE-2025-20124 affects users of Cisco Identity Services Engine that utilize the vulnerable API functionality.

4

What type of attack is possible with CVE-2025-20124?

CVE-2025-20124 allows authenticated, remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands on the affected device.

5

What causes the vulnerability CVE-2025-20124?

CVE-2025-20124 is caused by the insecure deserialization of user-supplied Java byte streams by the affected Cisco Identity Services Engine software.

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