Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2020-3415 affects Cisco NX-OS devices. A nearby attacker on the same Layer 2 network could abuse Cisco Discovery Protocol handling to gain administrative code execution or crash the device into a denial of service. The exposure is narrower than internet-facing RCE because the attacker must be Layer 2 adjacent and jumbo frames must be enabled.
Executive priority
Treat as high priority for network infrastructure teams, especially in shared, campus, data center, or operational networks where Layer 2 adjacency may be broad. It is not described as remotely internet-exploitable in the provided sources.
Technical view
The flaw is in the NX-OS Data Management Engine and is attributed to insufficient input validation, with CWE-787 listed. Exploitation uses a crafted Cisco Discovery Protocol packet sent to a Layer 2-adjacent affected device. Successful exploitation may execute arbitrary code with administrative privileges or repeatedly crash the CDP process, causing device reload and DoS.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on Cisco NX-OS switches or devices running affected software where Cisco Discovery Protocol is reachable from the same broadcast domain and jumbo frames are enabled on the receiving interface.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or active exploitation evidence. Exploitation requires no authentication, but it is adjacent-network only and depends on jumbo frames being enabled on the target interface.
Researcher notes
Key constraints are important: adjacent attack vector, no privileges, no user interaction, administrative impact, and jumbo-frame prerequisite. The supplied evidence does not include affected version ranges, fixed releases, workarounds, or exploitation-in-the-wild confirmation.
Mitigation direction
- Identify Cisco NX-OS devices and confirm whether affected releases are present.
- Review the Cisco advisory for fixed software and vendor-approved remediation.
- Prioritize remediation on networks with untrusted Layer 2 adjacency.
- Review whether CDP and jumbo frames are required on exposed interfaces.
- Apply compensating controls only when aligned with Cisco operational guidance.
Validation and detection
- Inventory NX-OS versions and map them to Cisco advisory applicability.
- Check interfaces where CDP is enabled and jumbo frames are configured.
- Confirm Layer 2 segments containing NX-OS devices are trusted and controlled.
- Review logs for CDP process crashes or unexpected device reloads.
- Verify remediation status after applying Cisco guidance or fixed software.
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-787: 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 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-2020-3415 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
- 8.8 (3.0)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H2.85.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.0 score
8.8HighVector: CVSS:3.0/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- 20200826 Cisco NX-OS Software Data Management Engine Remote Code Execution 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.
Out-of-bounds Write
Out-of-bounds Write represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.