Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This flaw can let a valid VPN user exhaust a Cisco ASA device so it stops accepting new SSL/TLS connections. Business impact is loss of new VPN and HTTPS management access until the device is reloaded. Existing SSL/TLS connections are reported as unaffected.
Executive priority
Treat as high priority for organizations relying on Cisco ASA for remote access or management. The attack needs credentials, but the outage impact can block new VPN and management sessions until reload.
Technical view
CVE-2019-12677 is an authenticated remote DoS in Cisco ASA Software SSL VPN handling of Base64-encoded strings. Opening many SSL VPN sessions can overwrite a special memory location, eventually causing memory allocation failures for new SSL/TLS sessions. CVSS v3.0 is 7.7 high.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on Cisco ASA appliances running ASA Software with SSL VPN enabled. The source bundle does not specify affected versions, so teams must validate release exposure against Cisco guidance.
Exploitation context
The source bundle says exploitation requires valid user credentials and network access to the affected SSL VPN feature. KEV is false, and no cited source in the bundle confirms active exploitation.
Researcher notes
The core condition is incorrect Base64 string handling in SSL VPN session activity, leading to memory corruption-like state and allocation failures. Sources do not provide affected version detail, exploit availability, or confirmed active exploitation.
Mitigation direction
- Check Cisco advisory for affected releases and vendor update guidance.
- Identify ASA devices with SSL VPN enabled and prioritize internet-facing systems.
- Restrict SSL VPN access to trusted users and enforce strong account controls.
- Monitor for abnormal SSL VPN session volume and SSL/TLS connection failures.
- Plan reload procedures for recovery if the DoS condition occurs.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Cisco ASA appliances and their ASA Software versions.
- Confirm whether SSL VPN is enabled on each device.
- Compare installed versions with Cisco advisory exposure data.
- Review logs for excessive SSL VPN sessions by authenticated users.
- Check for memory allocation errors affecting new SSL/TLS sessions.
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
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CWE-172: Exact CWE lookup
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Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2019-12677 mapping review
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Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 7.7 (3.0)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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.
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:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H3.14Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.0 score
7.7HighVector: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- 20191002 Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance Software SSL VPN Denial of Service VulnerabilityCVE reference · vendor-advisory, x_refsource_CISCO
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.
Encoding Error
Encoding Error represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.
