Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2021-1558 affects Cisco DNA Spaces Connector. A local authenticated user with dnasadmin privileges could abuse weak CLI command restrictions to run operating-system commands as root. This is not described as remotely exploitable, but it matters where connector access is shared or weakly controlled.
Executive priority
Treat this as a moderate infrastructure hardening item. It is not evidenced as actively exploited, but root-level compromise of a connector could create serious confidentiality and integrity risk if administrative access is mismanaged.
Technical view
The vulnerability is classified as CWE-78 command injection. Cisco describes insufficient restrictions during affected CLI command execution, allowing privilege escalation from dnasadmin to root. CVSS 3.1 is 6.0 with local access and high privileges required, but high confidentiality and integrity impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to organizations running Cisco DNA Spaces Connector where users can authenticate locally as dnasadmin or otherwise reach affected local CLI functions. The source bundle does not provide affected version ranges.
Exploitation context
The provided data does not show CISA KEV listing or active exploitation. Exploitation requires authenticated local access with high privileges, so abuse is more likely after credential compromise, insider misuse, or poor administrative separation.
Researcher notes
The main uncertainty is version and fix detail: the bundle lists affected versions as n/a. Assessment should stay anchored to Cisco's advisory and CVE metadata, avoiding assumptions about patches, exploitability beyond local authenticated use, or affected deployments.
Mitigation direction
- Review Cisco's advisory for affected releases and vendor remediation guidance.
- Restrict dnasadmin and local CLI access to trusted administrators only.
- Audit who can access Cisco DNA Spaces Connector management interfaces.
- Monitor connector hosts for unexpected privileged command execution.
- Prioritize remediation where connector access is broadly shared.
Validation and detection
- Inventory all Cisco DNA Spaces Connector deployments.
- Compare installed versions and configurations with Cisco's advisory.
- Identify users or systems with dnasadmin access.
- Review recent administrative access and privilege-related logs.
- Confirm operational owners have applied vendor guidance.
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-78: Command execution behavior lookup
Command injection weaknesses can lead defenders to review execution techniques and command interpreter telemetry. 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 lookupPrivilege 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 lookupCVE-2021-1558 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
- 6 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N0.85.2Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
6MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- 20210519 Cisco DNA Spaces Connector Privilege Escalation VulnerabilitiesCVE 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.