Executive Summary

Authenticated local attacker with administrator privileges can send a crafted request to the Cisco ISE Embedded Service Router (ESR) to bypass privilege checks, read/write/delete arbitrary OS files, and elevate to root. ESR must be licensed and enabled; it is not active by default. The vulnerability is not listed in CISA KEV.

---

Authoritative CVE Metadata - CVSS Base Score: 6.0 (MEDIUM) - Published: 2023-09-07T20:15:07.473 - Last Modified: 2026-09-21T13:10:37.343

Original Description: A vulnerability in the Embedded Service Router (ESR) of Cisco ISE could allow an authenticated, local attacker to read, write, or delete arbitrary files on the underlying operating system and escalate their privileges to root. To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker must have valid Administrator-level privileges on the affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper privilege management in the ESR console. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted request to an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to elevate their privileges to root and read, write, or delete arbitrary files from the underlying operating system of the affected device. Note: The ESR is not enabled by default and must be licensed. To verify the status of the ESR in the Admin GUI, choose Administration > Settings > Protocols > IPSec.

"One that desires to excel should endeavour in those things that are in themselves most excellent."

— Epictetus