Vulnerability Database

346,508

Total vulnerabilities in the database

CVE-2019-1836 — cisco / nx-os

Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')

A vulnerability in the system shell for Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Fabric Switches in Application Centric Infrastructure (ACI) mode could allow an authenticated, local attacker to use symbolic links to overwrite system files. These system files may be sensitive and should not be overwritable by non-root users. The attacker would need valid device credentials. The vulnerability is due to incorrect symbolic link verification of directory paths when they are used in the system shell. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by authenticating to the device and providing crafted user input to specific symbolic link CLI commands. Successful exploitation could allow the attacker to overwrite system files that should be restricted. This vulnerability has been fixed in software version 14.1(1i).

  • Published: May 3, 2019
  • Updated: Nov 9, 2025
  • CVE: CVE-2019-1836
  • Severity: High
  • Exploit:

CVSS v3:

  • Severity: High
  • Score: 7.1
  • AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H

CVSS v2:

  • Severity: Medium
  • Score: 6.6
  • AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:C/A:C

Frequently Asked Questions

A security vulnerability is a weakness in software, hardware, or configuration that can be exploited to compromise confidentiality, integrity, or availability. Many vulnerabilities are tracked as CVEs (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures), which provide a standardized identifier so teams can coordinate patching, mitigation, and risk assessment across tools and vendors.

CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) estimates technical severity, but it doesn't automatically equal business risk. Prioritize using context like internet exposure, affected asset criticality, known exploitation (proof-of-concept or in-the-wild), and whether compensating controls exist. A "Medium" CVSS on an exposed, production system can be more urgent than a "Critical" on an isolated, non-production host.

A vulnerability is the underlying weakness. An exploit is the method or code used to take advantage of it. A zero-day is a vulnerability that is unknown to the vendor or has no publicly available fix when attackers begin using it. In practice, risk increases sharply when exploitation becomes reliable or widespread.

Recurring findings usually come from incomplete Asset Discovery, inconsistent patch management, inherited images, and configuration drift. In modern environments, you also need to watch the software supply chain: dependencies, containers, build pipelines, and third-party services can reintroduce the same weakness even after you patch a single host. Unknown or unmanaged assets (often called Shadow IT) are a common reason the same issues resurface.

Use a simple, repeatable triage model: focus first on externally exposed assets, high-value systems (identity, VPN, email, production), vulnerabilities with known exploits, and issues that enable remote code execution or privilege escalation. Then enforce patch SLAs and track progress using consistent metrics so remediation is steady, not reactive.

SynScan combines attack surface monitoring and continuous security auditing to keep your inventory current, flag high-impact vulnerabilities early, and help you turn raw findings into a practical remediation plan.