How severe is CVE-2020-3213?

CVE-2020-3213 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.7, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires high privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2020-3213 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (33rd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2020-3213?

CVE-2020-3213 primarily affects Cisco Ios Xe. In total, 192 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2020-3213?

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

When was CVE-2020-3213 published?

CVE-2020-3213 was published on 2020-06-03 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2020-3213

CVE-2020-3213 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Cisco Ios Xe with a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.7. 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-264.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 6.7)
CVSS v2: 7.2
EPSS exploit prediction: 0% (33rd percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-264
Affected product: Cisco Ios Xe
Published: 2020-06-03
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

A vulnerability in the ROMMON of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to elevate privileges to those of the root user of the underlying operating system. The vulnerability is due to the ROMMON allowing for special parameters to be passed to the device at initial boot up. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending parameters to the device at initial boot up. An exploit could allow the attacker to elevate from a Priv15 user to the root user and execute arbitrary commands with the privileges of the root user.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2020-3213?: A vulnerability in the ROMMON of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to elevate privileges to those of the root user of the underlying operating system. The vulnerability is due to the ROMMON allowing for special parameters to be passed to the device at initial boot up. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending parameters to the device at initial boot up. An exploit could allow the attacker to elevate from a Priv15 user to the root user and execute arbitrary commands with the privileges of the root user.
How severe is CVE-2020-3213?: CVE-2020-3213 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.7, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires high privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2020-3213 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (33rd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2020-3213?: CVE-2020-3213 primarily affects Cisco Ios Xe. In total, 192 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2020-3213?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2020-3213 published?: CVE-2020-3213 was published on 2020-06-03 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

https://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-priv-esc3-GMgnGCHx

Affected products (192)

cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.8.0s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.8.1s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.8.2s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.9.0as:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.9.0s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.9.1as:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.9.1s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.9.2s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.0s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.1s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.2as:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.2s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.2ts:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.3s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.4s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.5s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.6s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.7s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.8as:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.8s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.9s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.10.10s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.11.0s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.11.1s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.11.2s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.11.3s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.11.4s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.12.0as:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.12.0s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.12.1s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.12.2s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.12.3s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.12.4s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.13.0as:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.13.0s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.13.1s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.13.2as:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.13.2s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.13.3s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xe:3.13.4s:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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