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ExploitedIn CISA KEV

CVE-2018-0156

Exploitation confirmed. First attested on 2022-03-03 by CISA-ADP, CISA KEV, GCVE · kevintel.

  • Published2018-03-28
  • WeaknessCWE-20 · CWE-399

Am I affected?

With a domain, we read the version its public headers and pages expose. A distribution build can carry the fix under an older number.

Description

A vulnerability in the Smart Install feature of Cisco IOS Software and Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to trigger a reload of an affected device, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition. The vulnerability is due to improper validation of packet data. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted packet to an affected device on TCP port 4786. Only Smart Install client switches are affected. Cisco devices that are configured as a Smart Install director are not affected by this vulnerability. Cisco Bug IDs: CSCvd40673.

Timeline

dates in UTC
  1. 2018-03-2822:29CVE publishedNVD
  2. 2022-03-03Added to the CISA KEV catalogCISA KEV
  3. 2022-03-03Listed as exploited by GCVEGCVE
  4. 2022-03-03Exploitation first reportedCISA KEV
  5. 2024-11-0817:27SSVC exploitation set to activeCISA-ADP

Versions per branch

NVD
Cisco iosversion to verify
BranchAffectedFixed in
15.2= 15.2\(2\)e4no fix published
15.2= 15.2\(2a\)jano fix published
Cisco ios xeversion to verify
BranchAffectedFixed in
15.2= 15.2\(2\)e4no fix published
15.2= 15.2\(2a\)jano fix published

as publishedRanges as NVD and OSV publish them; a distribution’s build can be fixed under an older number.

Products declared by the CNA1 product

As cisco, the CNA that assigned this CVE, declared them in the CVE record; versions as written.

  • Cisco IOS and IOS XE
    Affected
    • = Cisco IOS and IOS XEno fix stated

Source: the CNA record (CVE Program), © The MITRE Corporation,CVE Terms of UseCVE recordupdated 2018-04-19

Distribution builds and vendor advisories

Packages from OSV.dev and products from the vendors' CSAF advisories.

version not verifiedVersions not verified: read as OSV.dev and the vendors publish them, not checked against each vendor's release list.

Vendor advisories

  • ICSA-18-107-04 CISA5 known affected

    Rockwell Automation Stratix and ArmorStratix Switches

    Allen-Bradley Stratix 5400 Industrial Ethernet Switches: versions 15.2(6)E0a and earlier; · Allen-Bradley Stratix 8000 Modular Managed Ethernet Switches: versions 15.2(6)E0a and earlier; · Allen-Bradley Stratix 5410 Industrial Distribution Switches: versions 15.2(6)E0a and earlier; · +2 more

Full record on NVD

Fix

  1. CISA’s required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.due 2022-03-17
  2. Mitigation from the vendor CISA ICSA-18-107-04 · 5 productsRockwell Automation recommends users upgrade to FRN 15.2(6)E1 or later.
  3. Mitigation from the vendor CISA ICSA-18-107-04 · 5 productsRockwell Automation has provided knowledge base article number 1073268 on their website
  4. Mitigation from the vendor CISA ICSA-18-107-04 · 5 productsCisco has released new Snort Rules at https://www.cisco.com/web/software/286271056/117258/sf-rules-2018-03-29-new.htm
  5. Mitigation from the vendor CISA ICSA-18-107-04 · 5 productsCVE-2018-0156 - Snort Rule 41725
  6. Mitigation from the vendor CISA ICSA-18-107-04 · 5 productsCisco adds the following notes for the Smart Install vulnerabilities (CVE-2018-0171 and CVE-2018-0156): Smart Install is turned off by express setup; however, upgraded switches but not re-setup may have it enabled. Disable the Smart Install feature with the no vstack configuration command if it is …
  7. Mitigation from the vendor CISA ICSA-18-107-04 · 5 productsHelp minimize network exposure for all control system devices and/or systems, and confirm that they are not accessible from the Internet.

Advisories and patches

Detection

Nuclei template
none so far
ProjectDiscovery
Exploit-DB
no entry
Exploit-DB
Metasploit modules
none listed
Metasploit Framework

CISA Known Exploited Vulnerability

Date Added
2022-03-03
Patch Due Date
2022-03-17
Ransomware Use
Unknown
Required Action
Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Sources

Identifiers

Technical details

CVSS v3 Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Published
2018-03-28
Last Modified
2026-06-17
NVD status
Analyzed
GitHub Advisory
GHSA-25w3-v3vx-g29w

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2018-0156?

A vulnerability in the Smart Install feature of Cisco IOS Software and Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to trigger a reload of an affected device, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition. The vulnerability is due to improper validation of packet data. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted packet to an affected device on TCP port 4786. Only Smart Install client switches are affected. Cisco devices that are configured as a Smart Install director are not affected by this vulnerability. Cisco Bug IDs: CSCvd40673.

Is CVE-2018-0156 actively exploited?

Yes. CVE-2018-0156 is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, meaning it has been confirmed as actively exploited in the wild. CISA requires federal agencies to patch by 2022-03-17.

What is the CVSS score for CVE-2018-0156?

CVE-2018-0156 has a CVSS v3 base score of 7.5 (HIGH severity), with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.

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Sources for this record