Due to several software vulnerabilities in the NX-OS network operating system, certain Cisco switches have been found to be vulnerable. Additionally, attacks on the Application Policy Infrastructure Controller are also possible. Security patches have been released to address these issues.
DoS Vulnerability
A specific vulnerability has been identified in the NX-OS related to the DHCPv6 Relay Agent, where improper processing of input in certain fields can be exploited by attackers (CVE-2024-20446, rated “high”). If such an attack is successful, it could lead to a crash of the dhcp_snoop process, causing multiple restarts of the process.
Cisco has specified that only Nexus series 3000, 7000, and 9000 switches are affected, and only if they are running NX-OS versions 8.2(11), 9.3(9), or 10.2(1). Furthermore, the DHCPv6 Relay Agent must be enabled in conjunction with at least one IPv6 address for the vulnerability to be exploitable.
Administrators are advised to use Cisco’s Software Checker, linked in the security advisory, to identify the NX-OS version that is fortified against this attack.
Additional Threats
The developers have also addressed other vulnerabilities in NX-OS. One such vulnerability could allow attackers to gain root privileges (CVE-2024-20411, rated “medium”). However, for this to be exploited, the attacker must have local access to the Bash Shell. Once this access is obtained, attackers could further escalate their privileges to Network Admin (CVE-2024-20413, rated “medium”).
Moreover, remote authenticated attackers could exploit vulnerabilities in the Application Policy Infrastructure Controller to install malicious software images (CVE-2024-20478, rated “medium”).
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