Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Cisco ISE's admin web interface can store malicious script input from an authenticated administrator. If another user later views an affected page, script could run in that user's browser session and expose browser-based information or alter interface content. Severity is moderate because exploitation needs valid administrative credentials and user interaction, but ISE is security-critical infrastructure.
Executive priority
Treat as a scheduled remediation item unless ISE administration is broadly exposed or administrator account control is weak. Prioritize validation because ISE supports identity and access control, and compromise of admin browser sessions could affect security operations.
Technical view
CVE-2021-1604 is stored XSS in Cisco Identity Services Engine Software caused by insufficient validation of user-supplied input in the web management interface. CVSS 3.1 is 4.8: network reachable, low complexity, high privileges required, user interaction required, changed scope, low confidentiality and integrity impact, and no availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to Cisco Identity Services Engine deployments where administrative users can access the web-based management interface. The source bundle does not identify specific affected or fixed versions, so teams must confirm applicability against Cisco's advisory and local ISE inventory.
Exploitation context
The provided sources do not state active exploitation, and the CVE is not marked KEV. Exploitation requires valid administrative credentials and a victim user viewing the stored content. This reduces broad internet-scale risk but still matters where administrator accounts, shared consoles, or delegated admin roles are exposed.
Researcher notes
Evidence supports stored XSS requiring authenticated administrative access. The bundle does not provide affected version ranges, fixed releases, proof of exploitation, or detailed vulnerable pages. Avoid assuming exploitability beyond the stated management-interface stored XSS behavior.
Mitigation direction
- Review Cisco's advisory for affected releases and vendor-approved fixes.
- Inventory Cisco ISE deployments and record software versions.
- Restrict ISE management interface access to trusted networks and administrators.
- Review administrative account access and remove unnecessary privileges.
- Monitor Cisco guidance before applying compensating controls or upgrades.
Validation and detection
- Confirm whether Cisco ISE Software is deployed in the environment.
- Compare installed ISE versions against Cisco's advisory.
- Verify management interface access is restricted to authorized administrators.
- Review admin roles for unnecessary high-privilege access.
- Check browser and audit logs for suspicious admin-console activity.
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-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 lookupCVE-2021-1604 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
- 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
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:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N1.72.7Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
4.8MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- 20210707 Cisco Identity Services Engine Stored Cross-Site Scripting 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 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.
