CVE-2017-3881
A vulnerability in the Cisco Cluster Management Protocol (CMP) processing code in Cisco IOS and Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an…
- Published
- Updated
- Reserved
- Assigned by
- cisco
Description
A vulnerability in the Cisco Cluster Management Protocol (CMP) processing code in Cisco IOS and Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to cause a reload of an affected device or remotely execute code with elevated privileges. The Cluster Management Protocol utilizes Telnet internally as a signaling and command protocol between cluster members. The vulnerability is due to the combination of two factors: (1) the failure to restrict the use of CMP-specific Telnet options only to internal, local communications between cluster members and instead accept and process such options over any Telnet connection to an affected device; and (2) the incorrect processing of malformed CMP-specific Telnet options. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending malformed CMP-specific Telnet options while establishing a Telnet session with an affected Cisco device configured to accept Telnet connections. An exploit could allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code and obtain full control of the device or cause a reload of the affected device. This affects Catalyst switches, Embedded Service 2020 switches, Enhanced Layer 2 EtherSwitch Service Module, Enhanced Layer 2/3 EtherSwitch Service Module, Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module (CGESM) for HP, IE Industrial Ethernet switches, ME 4924-10GE switch, RF Gateway 10, and SM-X Layer 2/3 EtherSwitch Service Module. Cisco Bug IDs: CSCvd48893.
Exploited in the wild
CISA lists this vulnerability in its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog as Cisco IOS and IOS XE Remote Code Execution Vulnerability.
- Added
- 25 Mar 2022
- Fix due (US federal)
- 15 Apr 2022
- Used by ransomware
- Not known
Apply updates per vendor instructions.
Scores
| Scored by | CVSS | Score | Vector |
|---|---|---|---|
| CISA-ADPADP (enrichment) | 3.1 | Critical9.8 | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H |
| NVDNVD · Analyzed | 3.1 | Critical9.8 | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H |
- EPSS (exploitation in 30 days)
- 99.0% · top 0.1% of all CVEs (4 Nov 2026)
- CISA SSVC
- Exploitation: active · Automatable: yes · Technical impact: total
The list uses the assigner's score when there is one, then CISA's, then NVD's: Critical 9.8.
Weakness
- Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
- CWE-20 Improper Input Validation (opens in a new tab)All about CWE-20 and its CVEs
Affected products
Cisco IOS and IOS XE Software
- affected Cisco IOS and IOS XE Software
References (7)
- 41872 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- 41874 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- 97391 (opens in a new tab)vdb-entryx_refsource_BIDx_transferred
- 96960 (opens in a new tab)vdb-entryx_refsource_BIDx_transferred
- https://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-20170317-cmp (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_CONFIRMx_transferred
- 1038059 (opens in a new tab)vdb-entryx_refsource_SECTRACKx_transferred
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2017-3881 (opens in a new tab)government-resource
Sources
The same CVE in the primary databases and aggregators, to check against.
- CVE.org record (opens in a new tab)
- CVE List JSON (GitHub) (opens in a new tab)
- NVD (opens in a new tab)
- CISA KEV catalog (opens in a new tab)
- FIRST EPSS (opens in a new tab)
- OSV.dev (opens in a new tab)
- GitHub Advisories (opens in a new tab)
- CIRCL Vulnerability-Lookup (opens in a new tab)
Badge for a README or a ticket
[](https://trackcve.app/cve/CVE-2017-3881)Record last updated .