Auth Local File Write via Bootstrap in Cisco IOS XE SD-WAN
CVE-2025-20155 Published on May 7, 2025

A vulnerability in the bootstrap loading of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to write arbitrary files to an affected system. This vulnerability is due to insufficient input validation of the bootstrap file that is read by the system software when a device is first deployed in SD-WAN mode or when an administrator configures SD-Routing on the device. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by modifying a bootstrap file generated by Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager, loading it into the device flash, and then either reloading the device in a green field deployment in SD-WAN mode or configuring the device with SD-Routing. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to perform arbitrary file writes to the underlying operating system.

NVD

Vulnerability Analysis

CVE-2025-20155 can be exploited with local system access, and requires user privileges. This vulnerability is considered to have a low attack complexity. The potential impact of an exploit of this vulnerability is considered to have a high impact on confidentiality and integrity, and no impact on availability.

Attack Vector:
LOCAL
Attack Complexity:
LOW
Privileges Required:
HIGH
User Interaction:
NONE
Scope:
UNCHANGED
Confidentiality Impact:
HIGH
Integrity Impact:
HIGH
Availability Impact:
NONE

Weakness Type

Improper Validation of Specified Type of Input

The product receives input that is expected to be of a certain type, but it does not validate or incorrectly validates that the input is actually of the expected type.


Products Associated with CVE-2025-20155

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Cisco IOS XE
 

Affected Versions

Cisco IOS XE Software:

Exploit Probability

EPSS
0.11%
Percentile
29.68%

EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) scores estimate the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. The percentile shows you how this score compares to all other vulnerabilities.