Cisco Identity Services Engine Authorization Bypass Vulnerability

TL;DR 📌

• A vulnerability in the web-based management interface of Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to bypass the authorization mechanisms for specific administrative functions. This vulnerability is due to insufficient authorization enforcement mechanisms for users created by SAML SSO integration with an external identity provider. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by submitting a series of…
• No fixed release listed yet; apply mitigations and monitor.
• Workarounds are documented in the advisory.
• CVEs: CVE-2025-20264.

What happened 🕵️‍♂️

A vulnerability in the web-based management interface of Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to bypass the authorization mechanisms for specific administrative functions.

This vulnerability is due to insufficient authorization enforcement mechanisms for users created by SAML SSO integration with an external identity provider. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by submitting a series of specific commands to an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to modify a limited number of system settings, including some that would result in a system restart. In single-node Cisco ISE deployments, devices that are not authenticated to the network will not be able to authenticate until the Cisco ISE system comes back online.

Cisco has released software updates that address this vulnerability. There are no workarounds that address this vulnerability.

Affected products 🖥️

At the time of publication, this vulnerability affected Cisco ISE if it used SAML SSO integration with an external identity provider for user creation.

For information about which Cisco software releases were vulnerable at the time of publication, see the Fixed Software ["#fs"] section of this advisory. See the Details section in the bug ID(s) at the top of this advisory for the most complete and current information.

Fixed software 🔧

Upgrade to the first fixed release in your train (or later):

Workarounds 🧯

There are no workarounds that address this vulnerability.

Risk in context 🎯

Use vendor CVSS for prioritization. Consider exposure and asset criticality.

Fast facts ⚡

• Advisory: cisco-sa-ise-auth-bypass-mVfKVQAU
• Initial release: 2025-06-25T16:00:00 UTC
• Last updated: 2025-06-25T16:00:00 UTC

For leadership 🧭

Executive summary. Risk is Medium (CVSS 6.4) for Cisco, Cisco Identity Services Engine Software. Vendor fixes are available; prioritize upgrade within 30 days based on environment risk.

Why it matters (exposure drivers):

• Potential service impact and security exposure depend on deployment topology and access paths.
• Treat internet-exposed or multi-tenant management nodes as higher risk.
• Ensure monitoring for abnormal auth/config events until upgrades complete.

Remediation & timing:

• Upgrade to the first fixed release per the table above; schedule an approved change window within 30 days.
• Change risk: low-to-moderate (standard vendor patch). Validate backups and rollback plan.

Now / Next / Later:

• Now: Confirm exposure, identify affected versions, and enable monitoring/alerts.
• Next: Patch according to the fixed software table; verify service health post-change.
• Later: Add control checks to build pipeline/CMDB to block drift to vulnerable trains.