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CVE Record

CVE-2020-3585: Cisco Firepower 1000 Series Bleichenbacher Attack Vulnerability

A vulnerability in the TLS handler of Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) Software and Cisco Firepower Threat Defense (FTD) Software for Cisco Firepower 1000 Series firewalls could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to gain access to sensitive information. The vulnerability is due to improper implementation of countermeasures against the Bleichenbacher attack for cipher suites that rely on RSA for key exchange. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending crafted TLS messages to the device, which would act as an oracle and allow the attacker to carry out a chosen-ciphertext attack. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to perform cryptanalytic operations that may allow decryption of previously captured TLS sessions to the affected device. To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker must be able to perform both of the following actions: Capture TLS traffic that is in transit between clients and the affected device Actively establish a considerable number of TLS connections to the affected device

MediumCVSS 5.3Not KEV-listedUpdated
Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

This issue affects TLS handling on Cisco Firepower 1000 Series devices running ASA or FTD Software. An attacker who can capture traffic and also make many TLS connections to the device may recover information from previously captured TLS sessions. It is a confidentiality issue, not a direct device takeover.

Executive priority

Handle this as a medium-priority confidentiality risk. Prioritize internet-facing or partner-facing firewall TLS services, environments with sensitive administrative sessions, and networks where traffic capture by an attacker is plausible.

Technical view

The flaw is an incomplete countermeasure against Bleichenbacher-style chosen-ciphertext attacks in TLS cipher suites using RSA key exchange. The affected device can behave as an oracle when processing crafted TLS messages. Successful exploitation may enable cryptanalytic decryption of previously captured TLS sessions to the device.

Likely exposure

Exposure is most relevant for Firepower 1000 Series firewalls running affected Cisco ASA or FTD Software with TLS services reachable by an attacker, especially where RSA key-exchange cipher suites are enabled. The source bundle does not provide affected version ranges.

Exploitation context

The CVE is not listed as CISA KEV in the supplied bundle. Exploitation requires both passive capture of client-to-device TLS traffic and active establishment of many TLS connections to the same device, which limits opportunistic abuse but matters for exposed or closely monitored network paths.

Researcher notes

Evidence supports a Bleichenbacher oracle condition tied to RSA key exchange in ASA/FTD TLS handling. The bundle does not include fixed version details, workaround specifics, proof-of-concept status, or confirmed exploitation. Avoid assuming broader Cisco product impact beyond the named Firepower 1000 ASA/FTD context.

Mitigation direction

  • Check Cisco advisory for affected releases, fixed software, and supported workarounds.
  • Apply Cisco-recommended updates or mitigations to confirmed affected devices.
  • Inventory Firepower 1000 devices running Cisco ASA or FTD Software.
  • Limit reachable TLS services to trusted networks where operationally feasible.
  • Treat previously captured TLS traffic to affected devices as potentially sensitive.

Validation and detection

  • Identify Cisco Firepower 1000 Series deployments using ASA or FTD Software.
  • Compare installed software against Cisco advisory guidance.
  • Review TLS configuration for RSA key-exchange cipher suite exposure.
  • Confirm whether device TLS services are reachable from untrusted networks.
  • Check monitoring for unusual volumes of TLS connections to affected devices.
Prepared
Confidence
high
Sources
3

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

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 · medium confidence lookup

CWE-203: Information exposure and cloud metadata lookup

Information exposure and SSRF weaknesses can make discovery, cloud metadata, and credential material review relevant. 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.

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cve · low confidence lookup

CVE-2020-3585 mapping review

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Medium
CVSS
5.3 (3.1)
Known Exploited
No
Published

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/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
2Source 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
5.3CVSS 3.1MediumCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N3.91.4Primary CVE score

Vulnerability scoring details

Base CVSS 3.1 score

5.3Medium
CVSS 3.1 vector shape for CVE-2020-3585Attack VectorAttack ComplexityPrivileges RequiredUser InteractionScopeConfidentiality ImpactIntegrity ImpactAvailability Impact

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/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-203 · source CWE mapping

Observable Discrepancy

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