Vulnerability · Published Mar 12, 2025 · Assigned by cisco
CVE-2025-20177Cisco IOS XR Software Image Verification Bypass Vulnerability
Medium 6.7
In plain English
A medium-severity security flaw in Cisco IOS XR Software from Cisco. There are no confirmed reports of exploitation so far. The chance it is exploited in the next 30 days is estimated at 0.2% (higher than 6% of all known vulnerabilities).
Official description
A vulnerability in the boot process of Cisco IOS XR Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to bypass Cisco IOS XR image signature verification and load unverified software on an affected device. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker must have root-system privileges on the affected device. This vulnerability is due to incomplete validation of files in the boot verification process. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by manipulating the system configuration options to bypass some of the integrity checks that are performed during the boot process. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to control the boot configuration, which could enable them to bypass the requirement to run Cisco-signed images or alter the security properties of the running system. Note: Because exploitation of this vulnerability could result in the attacker bypassing Cisco image verification, Cisco has raised the Security Impact Rating (SIR) of this advisory from Medium to High.
Affected products (as reported)
| Vendor | Product | Versions |
|---|---|---|
| Cisco | Cisco IOS XR Software | 7.0.17.0.07.1.17.0.906.7.17.0.27.1.157.2.0 |
Weakness: CWE-274 · Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H