Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Older versions of Nagios XI (before 2012R1.6) have a flaw in the Auto-Discovery feature that lets a logged-in user run their own commands on the monitoring server. Because monitoring servers typically have broad access to other systems, a successful attacker could pivot widely. The fix is to upgrade Nagios XI and tighten who can use Auto-Discovery.
Executive priority
Treat as high priority for any team running Nagios XI before 2012R1.6. An authenticated insider or compromised low-privilege account could fully take over the monitoring server, which typically holds broad network credentials. Plan a patch or upgrade window now.
Technical view
CVE-2013-10073 is an OS command injection (CWE-78) in the Nagios XI Auto-Discovery tool in versions prior to 2012R1.6. Authenticated user input is interpolated into a shell command without sanitization or argument quoting, enabling arbitrary command execution as the Nagios service account. CVSS 4.0 score is 8.7 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H), reflecting low privileges required and full host-level impact.
Likely exposure
Limited to organizations still operating Nagios XI versions older than 2012R1.6, particularly internet-exposed monitoring portals or shared multi-tenant deployments where lower-privileged users hold Auto-Discovery rights. Modern, supported Nagios XI releases are not in scope per the advisory.
Exploitation context
Exploitation requires an authenticated Nagios XI account with access to the Auto-Discovery feature. No public KEV listing or confirmed in-the-wild activity is cited in the bundle. The flaw is more than a decade old and the affected versions are end-of-life, so risk is concentrated in legacy or unmaintained installs.
Researcher notes
CWE-78 OS command injection in the Auto-Discovery tool, scored CVSS 4.0 8.7 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L). Per the advisory, user input flows into a shell without proper quoting/sanitization, executing as the Nagios service account. PR:L indicates an authenticated precondition. Affected product entry lists "0" with defaultStatus unaffected, so confirm exact fixed version (2012R1.6) against your build. No exploit artifacts, payloads, or PoC are provided here.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade Nagios XI to 2012R1.6 or, preferably, a current supported release per vendor changelog.
- Restrict Auto-Discovery permissions to a small set of trusted administrators.
- Place the Nagios XI web interface behind VPN or IP allow-listing; remove public exposure.
- Rotate any credentials or API tokens stored on the Nagios XI host after patching.
- Review vendor guidance at nagios.com for any additional hardening advisories.
Validation and detection
- Inventory all Nagios XI hosts and record build version against the 2012R1.6 fix line.
- Confirm whether the Auto-Discovery component is enabled and which roles can reach it.
- Review web/application logs for unusual Auto-Discovery requests or shell metacharacters in parameters.
- Check process and audit logs on the Nagios server for unexpected child processes spawned by the web service account.
- Validate post-upgrade behavior in a staging environment before production rollout.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-78: Command execution behavior lookup
Command injection weaknesses can lead defenders to review execution techniques and command interpreter telemetry. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupExecution behavior lookup
The CVE wording references code or command execution, so execution technique review may help defensive triage. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2013-10073 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 8.7 (4.0)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N——Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 4.0 score
8.7HighVector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://www.nagios.com/changelog/nagios-xi/CVE reference · release-notes, patch
- https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/nagios-xi-auto-discovery-shell-command-injectionCVE reference · third-party-advisory
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')
Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.