Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Cisco FTD could fail to enforce configured file policies for certain traffic. A remote unauthenticated attacker whose traffic passes through an affected device could bypass file controls and deliver malicious content into a protected network. This is not reported as actively exploited in the provided sources.
Executive priority
Treat as a moderate-priority network control bypass. Escalate priority where FTD is a primary boundary defense for malware filtering or where high-risk inbound or outbound file traffic depends on these policies.
Technical view
The flaw is in Cisco FTD's SSL/TLS protocol inspection engine. Errors handling specific SSL/TLS messages can let crafted HTTP traffic bypass configured file policies. CVSS 3.0 is 5.8 with network attack vector, low complexity, no privileges, no user interaction, changed scope, and low integrity impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely where Cisco Firepower Threat Defense Software inspects SSL/TLS traffic and relies on file policies to block malicious payloads. The source bundle does not identify affected or fixed version numbers, so teams must confirm product release status against Cisco guidance.
Exploitation context
The CVE is not in CISA KEV in the provided bundle, and no cited source states active exploitation. The described attack is remote and unauthenticated, but requires malicious traffic to flow through an affected FTD inspection path.
Researcher notes
Evidence supports Cisco FTD only. The weakness maps to CWE-693, protection mechanism failure. The source bundle lacks fixed-version detail and independent exploitation reporting, so avoid claims about broad product impact, weaponization, or active attacks.
Mitigation direction
- Review Cisco's advisory for affected and fixed FTD releases.
- Prioritize vendor-supported software updates or documented workarounds.
- Confirm file policies are enabled only where inspection is functioning as intended.
- Increase monitoring for suspicious files crossing FTD-protected boundaries.
- Do not assume other Cisco products are affected without Cisco confirmation.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Cisco FTD deployments and software versions.
- Identify devices performing SSL/TLS inspection with file policy enforcement.
- Compare installed releases against Cisco's affected-version guidance.
- Review logs for file policy bypass indicators or unexpected allowed files.
- Validate remediation using approved defensive tests, not offensive payloads.
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-693: 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-2019-1970 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
- Medium
- CVSS
- 5.8 (3.0)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:L/A: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:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:L/A:N3.91.4Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.0 score
5.8MediumVector: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:L/A:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- 20190807 Cisco Firepower Threat Defense Software File Policy Bypass 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.
Protection Mechanism Failure
Protection Mechanism Failure represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.