Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Cisco Nexus Dashboard has a medium-severity flaw that could let someone who already has Administrator access overwrite files through the web management interface. This is not described as a drive-by or unauthenticated issue, but it matters because misuse of an admin account could change critical files on the device.
Executive priority
Handle during normal vulnerability remediation unless Nexus Dashboard admin access is broadly exposed or admin credentials are suspected compromised. Escalate if management access is reachable from untrusted networks.
Technical view
CVE-2022-20913 affects Cisco Nexus Dashboard. The issue is insufficient input validation in the web-based management interface, mapped to CWE-23. An authenticated remote attacker with Administrator credentials could upload a crafted file and overwrite arbitrary files. CVSS 3.1 is 4.9: network exploitable, low complexity, high privileges required, integrity impact high.
Likely exposure
Exposure is likely limited to organizations running Cisco Nexus Dashboard where the web-based management interface is reachable by administrators. Risk depends heavily on who has Administrator credentials and whether management access is restricted.
Exploitation context
The provided sources do not show CISA KEV listing or active exploitation. Exploitation requires Administrator credentials and a crafted upload through the management interface. Treat this mainly as an admin-account misuse or compromise amplifier.
Researcher notes
Evidence supports arbitrary file overwrite through insufficient input validation, not unauthenticated compromise. The bundle does not provide fixed version details or exploit-in-the-wild evidence. Validate exposure through product presence, interface reachability, privileges, and Cisco advisory status.
Mitigation direction
- Review Cisco's advisory for affected releases, fixed releases, and workarounds.
- Prioritize vendor-supported updates once applicable Cisco guidance is confirmed.
- Restrict Nexus Dashboard management access to trusted administrative networks.
- Audit Administrator accounts and remove unnecessary privileged access.
- Monitor for unexpected file changes on affected Nexus Dashboard systems.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Cisco Nexus Dashboard deployments and record running versions.
- Confirm whether management interfaces are reachable from untrusted networks.
- Review who holds Administrator credentials for Nexus Dashboard.
- Check vulnerability management records for CVE-2022-20913 coverage.
- Review logs or monitoring for suspicious file upload 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-23: File access and web shell behavior lookup
File traversal and upload weaknesses can lead teams to review file, web shell, execution, and collection 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 lookupFile access behavior lookup
The CVE wording references file access or upload behavior, so file telemetry and web shell review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2022-20913 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
- 4.9 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:N/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:N/I:H/A:N1.23.6Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
4.9MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- 20220720 Cisco Nexus Dashboard Arbitrary File Write VulnerabilityCVE 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.
Relative Path Traversal
Relative Path Traversal represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.