Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2018-0158 can let an unauthenticated remote attacker crash or exhaust memory on affected Cisco IOS and IOS XE devices. The business impact is service disruption, especially for routers, VPN gateways, and operational networks that rely on device availability.
Executive priority
Prioritize remediation for exposed Cisco infrastructure because the issue is remotely reachable, requires no authentication, affects availability, and appears in CISA KEV. Treat this as urgent where outages would disrupt connectivity, VPN access, or operational environments.
Technical view
The flaw is in Cisco IOS and IOS XE IKEv2 packet processing. Incorrect handling of certain IKEv2 packets can cause memory leakage or device reload, producing denial of service. CVSS 3.1 is 8.6 with network access, low complexity, no privileges, and high availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on Cisco IOS or IOS XE devices running affected software where IKEv2 processing is enabled and reachable from untrusted networks, partners, or the internet. The bundle does not provide specific fixed release mappings.
Exploitation context
CISA KEV status means this CVE is listed as known exploited. The provided Cisco/CVE description supports remote unauthenticated denial of service, but does not include exploit details, campaign context, or proof-of-concept status.
Researcher notes
Evidence supports CWE-20 style improper input processing in IKEv2. Keep analysis bounded to denial of service; sources do not indicate confidentiality or integrity impact. Use vendor documentation for exact affected and fixed releases rather than extrapolating platform coverage.
Mitigation direction
- Check Cisco's advisory for affected releases and fixed software guidance.
- Upgrade or remediate vulnerable Cisco IOS and IOS XE devices per Cisco guidance.
- Restrict IKEv2 reachability to trusted peers where operationally feasible.
- Prioritize internet-facing and operationally critical routing or VPN devices.
- Monitor for memory exhaustion, unexpected reloads, and IKEv2-related anomalies.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Cisco IOS and IOS XE devices and record software versions.
- Determine where IKEv2 is enabled and reachable from untrusted networks.
- Compare versions and configurations against the Cisco advisory.
- Review device logs for reloads, memory pressure, or IKEv2 processing errors.
- Confirm post-remediation devices are no longer on vulnerable releases.
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-20: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. 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 lookupCVE-2018-0158 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
- 8.6 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- Yes
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H
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.
CISA KEV status
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:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H3.94Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
8.6HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://ics-cert.us-cert.gov/advisories/ICSA-18-107-03CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://ics-cert.us-cert.gov/advisories/ICSA-18-107-04CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-20180328-ikeCVE reference · x_refsource_CONFIRM
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2018-0158CVE reference · government-resource
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.