CVE-2023-20012
Cisco Nexus 9300-FX3 Series Fabric Extender for UCS Fabric Interconnects Authentication Bypass Vulnerability
A vulnerability in the CLI console login authentication of Cisco Nexus 9300-FX3 Series Fabric Extender (FEX) when used in UCS Fabric Interconnect deployments could allow an unauthenticated attacker with physical access to bypass authentication. This vulnerability is due to the improper implementation of the password validation function. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by logging in to the console port on an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass authentication and execute a limited set of commands local to the FEX, which could cause a device reboot and denial of service (DoS) condition.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Physical
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges needed
- None
- User interaction
- None
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
5.3
Cisco Nexus 9300-FX3 Series Fabric Extender for UCS Fabric Interconnects Authentication Bypass Vulnerability
A vulnerability in the CLI console login authentication of Cisco Nexus 9300-FX3 Series Fabric Extender (FEX) when used in UCS Fabric Interconnect deployments could allow an unauthenticated attacker with physical access to bypass authentication. This vulnerability is due to the improper implementation of the password validation function. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by logging in to the console port on an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass authentication and execute a limited set of commands local to the FEX, which could cause a device reboot and denial of service (DoS) condition.
- Record
CVE-2023-20012- CVSS 3.1
- 5.3 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-287
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2023-24191
5.3
A vulnerability in the CLI console login authentication of Cisco Nexus 9300-FX3 Series Fabric Extender (FEX) when used in UCS Fabric Interconnect deployments could allow an unauthenticated attacker with physical access to bypass authentication. This vulnerability is due to the improper implementation of the password validation function. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by logging in to the console port on an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass authentication and execute a limited set of commands local to the FEX, which could cause a device reboot and denial of service (DoS) condition.
- Record
EUVD-2023-24191- CVSS 3.1
- 5.3 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H - Updated
- 2026-11-03
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-w6qv-pc93-vvwj
4.6
A vulnerability in the CLI console login authentication of Cisco Nexus 9300-FX3 Series Fabric...
A vulnerability in the CLI console login authentication of Cisco Nexus 9300-FX3 Series Fabric Extender (FEX) when used in UCS Fabric Interconnect deployments could allow an unauthenticated attacker with physical access to bypass authentication. This vulnerability is due to the improper implementation of the password validation function. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by logging in to the console port on an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass authentication and execute a limited set of commands local to the FEX, which could cause a device reboot and denial of service (DoS) condition.
- Record
GHSA-w6qv-pc93-vvwj- CVSS 3.1
- 4.6 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-287
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
5.3
A vulnerability in the CLI console login authentication of Cisco Nexus 9300-FX3 Series Fabric Extender (FEX) when used in UCS Fabric Interconnect deployments could allow an unauthenticated attacker with physical access to bypass authentication. This vulnerability is due to the improper implementation of the password validation function. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by logging in to the console port on an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass authentication and execute a limited set of commands local to the FEX, which could cause a device reboot and denial of service (DoS) condition.
- Record
CVE-2023-20012- CVSS 3.1
- 5.3 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H - CVSS 3.1
- 4.6 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-287
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| aliases | EUVD | |
| first indexed | CVE List, GitHub Advisories, NVD |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2023-20012 is a medium vulnerability (CVSS 5.3) in Cisco Unified Computing System (managed), published February 23, 2023. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 0.29%, the 22nd percentile. No source names a fixed version.