Advisory Details

July 17th, 2025

Cisco Identity Services Engine invokeStrongSwanShellScript Command Injection Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

CVE ID	CVE-2025-20281
CVSS SCORE	9.8, AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
AFFECTED VENDORS	Cisco
AFFECTED PRODUCTS	Identity Services Engine
VULNERABILITY DETAILS	This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of Cisco Identity Services Engine. Authentication is not required to exploit this vulnerability. The specific flaw exists within the implementation of the invokeStrongSwanShellScript method. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of a user-supplied string before using it to execute a system call. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of root.
ADDITIONAL DETAILS	Cisco has issued an update to correct this vulnerability. More details can be found at: https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-ise-unauth-rce-ZAd2GnJ6
DISCLOSURE TIMELINE	2025-05-02 - Vulnerability reported to vendor 2025-07-17 - Coordinated public release of advisory 2025-07-17 - Advisory Updated
CREDIT	Bobby Gould (@bobbygould5) of Trend Zero Day Initiative

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