CVE-2021-1442
Cisco IOS XE Software Plug-and-Play Privilege Escalation Vulnerability
A vulnerability in a diagnostic command for the Plug-and-Play (PnP) subsystem of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to elevate privileges to the level of an Administrator user (level 15) on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to insufficient protection of sensitive information. An attacker with low privileges could exploit this vulnerability by issuing the diagnostic CLI show pnp profile when a specific PnP listener is enabled on the device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to obtain a privileged authentication token. This token can be used to send crafted PnP messages and execute privileged commands on the targeted system.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- High
- Privileges needed
- Low
- User interaction
- None
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
7.0
Cisco IOS XE Software Plug-and-Play Privilege Escalation Vulnerability
A vulnerability in a diagnostic command for the Plug-and-Play (PnP) subsystem of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to elevate privileges to the level of an Administrator user (level 15) on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to insufficient protection of sensitive information. An attacker with low privileges could exploit this vulnerability by issuing the diagnostic CLI show pnp profile when a specific PnP listener is enabled on the device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to obtain a privileged authentication token. This token can be used to send crafted PnP messages and execute privileged commands on the targeted system.
- Record
CVE-2021-1442- CVSS 3.0
- 7.0 High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-532
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2021-6909
7.0
A vulnerability in a diagnostic command for the Plug-and-Play (PnP) subsystem of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to elevate privileges to the level of an Administrator user (level 15) on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to insufficient protection of sensitive information. An attacker with low privileges could exploit this vulnerability by issuing the diagnostic CLI show pnp profile when a specific PnP listener is enabled on the device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to obtain a privileged authentication token. This token can be used to send crafted PnP messages and execute privileged commands on the targeted system.
- Record
EUVD-2021-6909- CVSS 3.0
- 7.0 High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - Updated
- 2026-11-03
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-m3j8-p665-6qc9 No score
A vulnerability in a diagnostic command for the Plug-and-Play (PnP) subsystem of Cisco IOS XE...
A vulnerability in a diagnostic command for the Plug-and-Play (PnP) subsystem of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to elevate privileges to the level of an Administrator user (level 15) on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to insufficient protection of sensitive information. An attacker with low privileges could exploit this vulnerability by issuing the diagnostic CLI show pnp profile when a specific PnP listener is enabled on the device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to obtain a privileged authentication token. This token can be used to send crafted PnP messages and execute privileged commands on the targeted system.
- Record
GHSA-m3j8-p665-6qc9- Weakness
- CWE-532
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
7.8
A vulnerability in a diagnostic command for the Plug-and-Play (PnP) subsystem of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to elevate privileges to the level of an Administrator user (level 15) on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to insufficient protection of sensitive information. An attacker with low privileges could exploit this vulnerability by issuing the diagnostic CLI show pnp profile when a specific PnP listener is enabled on the device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to obtain a privileged authentication token. This token can be used to send crafted PnP messages and execute privileged commands on the targeted system.
- Record
CVE-2021-1442- CVSS 3.1
- 7.8 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - CVSS 3.0
- 7.0 High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - CVSS 2.0
- 6.9 Medium
AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C - Weakness
- CWE-532
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| aliases, published | EUVD | |
| first indexed | CVE List, GitHub Advisories, NVD |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2021-1442 is a high vulnerability (CVSS 7.0) in Cisco Ios Xe Software, published March 24, 2021. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 0.25%, the 16th percentile. No source names a fixed version.