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Vulnerabilities

Vulnerability · CVE-2025-20281

Cisco Identity Services Engine Injection Vulnerability

Published Jun 25, 2025 · catalog updated Jun 17, 2026 · Cisco Identity Services Engine

Patch now

CVE-2025-20281 is in the CISA known-exploited catalog, due Aug 18, 2025. Confirm Cisco Identity Services Engine against the vendor advisory and apply that fix. The CVSS score does not change the priority.

Severity
Critical10.0
Known exploitation
CISA KEV and VulnCheck KEV
EPSS
97.60%
Remediation
Remediation guidance
Affected products
cpe cisco/identity services engine · vendor Cisco Identity Services Engine

A vulnerability in a specific API of Cisco ISE and Cisco ISE-PIC could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the underlying operating system as root. The attacker does not require any valid credentials to exploit this vulnerability. This vulnerability is due to insufficient validation of user-supplied input. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by submitting a crafted API request. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to obtain root privileges on an affected device.

Are you affected?

Enter the version you run. The result uses only the ranges stored on this record.

The check returns affected, not affected, or incomplete. It does not guess a version that is missing from the record.

  • cpe cisco/identity services engine3.3.0
  • cpe cisco/identity services engine3.4.0
  • vendor Cisco Identity Services Engineversion unspecified

How to fix CVE-2025-20281

What to do

Three questions, each answered from this record only. Confirm the vendor advisory before you patch.

Should you patch?

CVE-2025-20281 is in the CISA known-exploited catalog, due Aug 18, 2025. Confirm Cisco Identity Services Engine against the vendor advisory and apply that fix. The CVSS score does not change the priority.

Which versions are affected?

Compare what you have installed with cisco/identity services engine 3.3.0; cisco/identity services engine 3.4.0. Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

What should an analyst verify?

CWE-74: Injection. EPSS 97.60%. The CISA KEV listing is the exploitation evidence. No Exploit-DB or Metasploit reference is linked. Use the source links for the original advisory.

Technology hubs

Cisco security

Code

The project this record applies to. Exploit listings stay in References.

No public source repository is identified for this product.

Timeline

Detection, updates, and resolution for this record.

  1. Jun 25, 2025 · Catalog

    Detected

    A vulnerability in a specific API of Cisco ISE and Cisco ISE-PIC could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the underlying operating system as root. The attacker does not require any valid credentials to exploit this vulnerability. This vulnerability is due to insufficient validation of user-supplied input. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by submittin

  2. Jul 28, 2025 · CISA KEV

    Known exploited

    Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

  3. Aug 18, 2025 · CISA KEV

    Remediation due

    Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

  4. Jun 17, 2026 · Catalog

    Updated

    A vulnerability in a specific API of Cisco ISE and Cisco ISE-PIC could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the underlying operating system as root. The attacker does not require any valid credentials to exploit this vulnerability. This vulnerability is due to insufficient validation of user-supplied input. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by submittin

Sources

  • CISA KEVConfirmed exploitationCVE-2025-20281

    Cisco Identity Services Engine contains an injection vulnerability in a specific API of Cisco ISE and Cisco ISE-PIC due to insufficient validation of user-supplied input allowing an attacker to exploit this vulnerability by submitting a crafted API request. Successful exploitation could allow an attacker to perform remote code execution and obtaining root privileges on an affected device.

    cisa.gov
  • CVE.orgVulnerability recordCVE-2025-20281

    Official CVE identifier

    cve.org
  • FIRST EPSSExploitation probabilityCVE-2025-20281

    30-day exploitation probability 97.6%

    first.org
  • NIST NVDVulnerability recordCVE-2025-20281

    A vulnerability in a specific API of Cisco ISE and Cisco ISE-PIC could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the underlying operating system as root. The attacker does not require any valid credentials to exploit this vulnerability. This vulner

    nvd.nist.gov
  • VulnCheck KEVConfirmed exploitationCVE-2025-20281

    Cisco Identity Services Engine contains an injection vulnerability in a specific API of Cisco ISE and Cisco ISE-PIC due to insufficient validation of user-supplied input allowing an attacker to exploit this vulnerability by submitting a crafted API request. Successful exploitatio

    vulncheck.com

References

Freshness

Last verified in this catalog Oct 17, 2026. Significant claims (KEV, EPSS, CVSS, affected ranges) come from the source rows above — open the original publisher for the authoritative advisory.