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CVE Record

CVE-2020-3589: Cisco Identity Services Engine Cross-Site Scripting Vulnerability

A vulnerability in the web-based management interface of Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) Software could allow an authenticated, remote attacker with administrative credentials to conduct a cross-site scripting (XSS) attack against a user of the interface. The vulnerability exists because the web-based management interface does not properly validate user-supplied input. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by injecting malicious code into specific pages of the interface. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary script code in the context of the interface or access sensitive, browser-based information. To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would need to have valid administrative credentials.

MediumCVSS 4.8Not KEV-listedUpdated
Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

CVE-2020-3589 is an authenticated XSS issue in Cisco ISE’s web management interface. An attacker already holding administrative credentials could inject script that runs in another interface user’s browser, potentially exposing browser-based sensitive information or changing what that user sees.

Executive priority

Treat this as a medium-priority hygiene issue unless Cisco ISE administration is broadly reachable or admin accounts are weakly controlled. The main business risk is misuse after privileged access is obtained, not unauthenticated compromise.

Technical view

The flaw is CWE-79 improper input validation in Cisco Identity Services Engine Software’s web-based management interface. Exploitation is remote but requires high privileges, low attack complexity, and user interaction. Scope is changed, with low confidentiality and integrity impact and no availability impact.

Likely exposure

Exposure is limited to organizations running Cisco ISE Software where the web management interface is accessible to authenticated administrators. The provided source bundle does not identify specific affected or fixed versions.

Exploitation context

The sources state exploitation requires valid administrative credentials and a user interacting with the affected interface. CISA KEV status is false in the bundle, and no cited source reports active exploitation.

Researcher notes

Version details are incomplete in the provided bundle. Validation should focus on Cisco advisory mapping, admin interface reachability, and privileged account controls. Avoid claiming exploitation in the wild without KEV or another cited source.

Mitigation direction

  • Review the Cisco advisory to identify affected and fixed ISE software versions.
  • Upgrade or apply Cisco guidance if your installed ISE version is affected.
  • Restrict ISE management interface access to trusted administrative networks.
  • Review administrative accounts and remove unnecessary privileged access.
  • Monitor Cisco guidance for version-specific remediation details.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory Cisco ISE deployments and record installed software versions.
  • Compare installed versions against the Cisco advisory and CVE record.
  • Confirm the management interface is not broadly exposed.
  • Review recent administrative activity for unexpected privileged access.
  • Verify only authorized administrators can reach the ISE interface.
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

Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.

cwe · medium confidence lookup

CWE-79: User-session and phishing behavior lookup

Client-side and session-facing weaknesses should be reviewed alongside initial-access and user-execution behaviors. 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 lookup
cve · low confidence lookup

CVE-2020-3589 mapping review

Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.

Open ATT&CK lookup
Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Medium
CVSS
4.8 (3.1)
Known Exploited
No
Published

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/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
4.8CVSS 3.1MediumCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N1.72.7Primary CVE score

Vulnerability scoring details

Base CVSS 3.1 score

4.8Medium
CVSS 3.1 vector shape for CVE-2020-3589Attack VectorAttack ComplexityPrivileges RequiredUser InteractionScopeConfidentiality ImpactIntegrity ImpactAvailability Impact

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/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 Identity Services Engine Softwaren/aListed
Weakness

CWE details

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

CWE-79 · source CWE mapping

Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')

Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.