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CVE Record

CVE-2018-15465: Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance Software Privilege Escalation Vulnerability

A vulnerability in the authorization subsystem of Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) Software could allow an authenticated, but unprivileged (levels 0 and 1), remote attacker to perform privileged actions by using the web management interface. The vulnerability is due to improper validation of user privileges when using the web management interface. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending specific HTTP requests via HTTPS to an affected device as an unprivileged user. An exploit could allow the attacker to retrieve files (including the running configuration) from the device or to upload and replace software images on the device.

HighCVSS 8.1Not KEV-listedUpdated
Glexia's TakeAutomated analysis

Security readout for executives and security teams

CVE-2018-15465 is a Cisco ASA management-plane privilege escalation issue. A low-privileged authenticated user could use the HTTPS web management interface to perform actions normally reserved for administrators, including accessing configuration files or replacing software images. Exposure is most likely where Cisco ASA devices run affected software and expose HTTPS web management to users who can authenticate with privilege levels 0 or 1. The bundle does not provide affected version ranges or fixed releases. Treat this as a high-priority network security issue if ASA web management is enabled. The business risk is unauthorized access to firewall configuration and potential software-image tampering by someone with only limited credentials. Mitigation focus: Review Cisco's advisory for affected and fixed ASA releases.; Upgrade affected ASA devices according to vendor guidance.; Limit HTTPS management access to trusted administrative networks..

Prepared

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

Potential ATT&CK relevance

Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context

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ATT&CK lookup starting points

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cwe · low confidence lookup

CWE-285: Exact CWE lookup

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description · low confidence lookup

Privilege behavior lookup

The CVE wording references privilege impact, so privilege escalation and authorization behavior review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.

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cve · low confidence lookup

CVE-2018-15465 mapping review

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
High
CVSS
8.1 (3.0)
Known Exploited
No
Published

Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N

Official CVE source material

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.

1CVSS vectors
0Timeline events
0ADP providers
3Source links

CVSS vector scores

1 official score

We 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.

ScoreVersionSeverityVectorExploitImpactSource
8.1CVSS 3.0HighCVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N2.85.2Primary CVE score

Vulnerability scoring details

Base CVSS 3.0 score

8.1High
CVSS 3.0 vector shape for CVE-2018-15465Attack VectorAttack ComplexityPrivileges RequiredUser InteractionScopeConfidentiality ImpactIntegrity ImpactAvailability Impact

Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N

Attack Vector
NetworkAdjacentLocalPhysical
Attack Complexity
LowHigh
Privileges Required
NoneLowHigh
User Interaction
NoneRequired
Scope
ChangedUnchanged
Confidentiality Impact
HighLowNone
Integrity Impact
HighLowNone
Availability Impact
HighLowNone

Source materials

Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
CiscoCisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) Softwaren/aListed
Weakness

CWE details

CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.

CWE-285 · source CWE mapping

Improper Authorization

Improper Authorization represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.