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CVE Record

CVE-2021-1482: Cisco SD-WAN vManage Authorization Bypass Vulnerability

A vulnerability in the web-based management interface of Cisco SD-WAN vManage Software could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to bypass authorization checking and gain access to sensitive information on an affected system. This vulnerability is due to insufficient authorization checks. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending crafted HTTP requests to the web-based management interface of an affected system. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass authorization checking and gain access to sensitive information on the affected system.Cisco has released software updates that address this vulnerability. There are no workarounds that address this vulnerability.

MediumCVSS 6.4Not KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

This flaw lets a logged-in remote user bypass authorization in Cisco SD-WAN vManage’s web management interface and view sensitive information they should not be able to access. It is not described as unauthenticated or availability-impacting, but it matters because vManage controls important network infrastructure.

Executive priority

Prioritize remediation in environments where vManage manages critical WAN infrastructure or is reachable by many internal, VPN, or third-party users. Treat as a controlled but real exposure issue, not an emergency internet worm scenario based on current sources.

Technical view

Cisco attributes the issue to insufficient authorization checks in the web-based management interface. An authenticated remote attacker could send crafted HTTP requests and bypass authorization, causing limited confidentiality and integrity impact. CVSS v3.1 score is 6.4, with low attack complexity, low privileges required, no user interaction, and no availability impact.

Likely exposure

Exposure is most likely in organizations running affected Cisco SD-WAN vManage or Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager versions where authenticated users can reach the management web interface.

Exploitation context

The provided sources do not show CISA KEV listing or active exploitation. Exploitation requires authenticated access and specially crafted HTTP requests to the management interface; no exploit details are provided here.

Researcher notes

Key constraints: authenticated attacker, remote web management interface, insufficient authorization checks, sensitive information exposure, and limited integrity impact. The CVE record lists CWE-20, while Cisco’s description emphasizes authorization-check failure. Evidence does not support claims of public exploitation.

Mitigation direction

  • Apply Cisco software updates that address this vulnerability.
  • Use the Cisco advisory to identify the correct fixed release path.
  • Do not rely on workarounds; Cisco states none address this issue.
  • Restrict management interface access while patching as risk reduction only.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory Cisco SD-WAN vManage or Catalyst SD-WAN Manager versions.
  • Compare deployed versions against the affected versions in the source bundle.
  • Confirm Cisco’s fixed software has been installed.
  • Review which authenticated users can access the web management interface.
  • Check management logs for unusual authenticated access to sensitive views.
Prepared
Confidence
high
Sources
3

Public sources used

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 · low confidence lookup

CWE-20: 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.

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description · low confidence lookup

Privilege behavior lookup

The CVE wording references privilege impact, so privilege escalation and authorization behavior review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.

Open ATT&CK lookup
cve · low confidence lookup

CVE-2021-1482 mapping review

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

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Medium
CVSS
6.4 (3.1)
Known Exploited
No
Published

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N/RL:X/RC:X/E:X

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
6.4CVSS 3.1MediumCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N/RL:X/RC:X/E:X3.12.7Primary CVE score

Vulnerability scoring details

Base CVSS 3.1 score

6.4Medium
CVSS 3.1 vector shape for CVE-2021-1482Attack VectorAttack ComplexityPrivileges RequiredUser InteractionScopeConfidentiality ImpactIntegrity ImpactAvailability Impact

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N/RL:X/RC:X/E:X

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 Catalyst SD-WAN Manager20.1.12, 19.2.1, 18.4.4, 18.4.5, 20.1.1.1, 20.1.1, 19.3.0, 19.2.2, 19.2.099, 18.3.6, 18.3.7, 19.2.0, 18.3.8, 19.0.0, 19.1.0, 18.4.302, 18.4.303, 19.2.097, 19.2.098, 17.2.10, 18.3.6.1, 19.0.1a, 18.2.0, 18.4.3, 18.4.1, 17.2.8, 18.3.3.1, 18.4.0, 18.3.1, 17.2.6, 17.2.9, 18.3.4, 17.2.5, 18.3.1.1, 18.3.5, 18.4.0.1, 18.3.3, 17.2.7, 17.2.4, 18.3.0, 19.2.3, 18.4.501_ES, 20.3.1, 20.1.2, 19.2.929, 19.2.31, 20.3.2, 19.2.32, 20.3.2_925, 20.3.2.1, 20.3.2.1_927, 18.4.6, 20.1.2_937, 20.4.1, 20.3.2_928, 20.3.2_929, 20.4.1.0.1, 20.3.2.1_930, 19.2.4, 20.4.1.1, 20.3.3, 19.2.4.0.1, 20.3.2_937, 20.3.3.1unknown
Weakness

CWE details

CWE-20

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