Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2021-1560 affects Cisco DNA Spaces Connector. A high-privileged remote user could inject commands during affected command execution and run arbitrary commands as root inside the Connector Docker container. Business risk rises where Connector administration is broadly accessible.
Executive priority
Treat as a focused remediation item for environments using Cisco DNA Spaces Connector. Prioritize if administrative access is widely delegated, exposed beyond management networks, or tied to accounts with weak controls.
Technical view
This is CWE-78 command injection from insufficient input sanitization. The CVSS vector is network-reachable, low complexity, no user interaction, and high privileges required. Stated impact is high confidentiality and integrity within the Connector container, with no availability impact listed.
Likely exposure
Exposure appears limited to Cisco DNA Spaces Connector deployments. The source bundle does not provide specific affected versions, so teams should verify deployments and compare installed releases against Cisco guidance.
Exploitation context
The provided sources do not report active exploitation, and this CVE is not marked as CISA KEV. Exploitation requires a high-privileged authenticated attacker, reducing broad internet-scale risk but increasing insider or credential-compromise relevance.
Researcher notes
The evidence supports authenticated command injection with root execution inside the Connector Docker container. The bundle lacks version granularity, patch details, proof-of-concept status, and telemetry. Avoid assuming host-level root unless Cisco documentation confirms container escape or host impact.
Mitigation direction
- Identify all Cisco DNA Spaces Connector deployments.
- Review Cisco's advisory for affected and fixed release guidance.
- Restrict administrative access to trusted users and management networks.
- Review privileged account hygiene for Connector administration.
- Monitor Connector and container logs for unexpected command activity.
Validation and detection
- Confirm whether Cisco DNA Spaces Connector is deployed.
- Record installed Connector version and configuration details.
- Compare the deployment against Cisco's advisory.
- Validate who has high-privileged Connector access.
- Check for unusual administrative actions around Connector command execution.
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 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 lookupContainer behavior lookup
The affected technology mentions containers, so container-specific ATT&CK technique review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-1560 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
- 6.5 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/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:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N1.25.2Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
6.5MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/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 Command Injection 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.
Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')
Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.