How severe is CVE-2020-3209?

CVE-2020-3209 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.8, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over physical access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2020-3209 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (18th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2020-3209?

CVE-2020-3209 primarily affects Cisco Ios Xe. In total, 314 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2020-3209?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.

When was CVE-2020-3209 published?

CVE-2020-3209 was published on 2020-06-03 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2020-3209

CVE-2020-3209 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Cisco Ios Xe with a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.8. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-347.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 6.8)
CVSS v2: 7.2
EPSS exploit prediction: 0% (18th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-347
Affected product: Cisco Ios Xe
Published: 2020-06-03
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

A vulnerability in software image verification in Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, physical attacker to install and boot a malicious software image or execute unsigned binaries on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to an improper check on the area of code that manages the verification of the digital signatures of system image files during the initial boot process. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by loading unsigned software on an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to install and boot a malicious software image or execute unsigned binaries on the targeted device.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2020-3209?: A vulnerability in software image verification in Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, physical attacker to install and boot a malicious software image or execute unsigned binaries on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to an improper check on the area of code that manages the verification of the digital signatures of system image files during the initial boot process. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by loading unsigned software on an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to install and boot a malicious software image or execute unsigned binaries on the targeted device.
How severe is CVE-2020-3209?: CVE-2020-3209 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.8, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over physical access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2020-3209 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (18th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2020-3209?: CVE-2020-3209 primarily affects Cisco Ios Xe. In total, 314 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2020-3209?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2020-3209 published?: CVE-2020-3209 was published on 2020-06-03 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

https://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-iosxe-digsig-bypass-FYQ3bmVq

Affected products (314)

cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.0se:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.0sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.1se:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.1sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.2se:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.2sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.3se:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.3sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.4sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.5sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.6sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.7sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.8sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.9sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.10sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.2.11sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.0se:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.0sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.0sq:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.0xo:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.1se:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.1sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.1sq:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.1xo:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.2se:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.2sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.2xo:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.3se:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.4se:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.3.5se:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.4.0sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.4.0sq:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.4.1sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.4.1sq:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.4.2sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.4.3sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.4.4sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.4.5sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.4.6sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.4.7sg:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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