Vulnerability Database

346,508

Total vulnerabilities in the database

CVE-2020-3205 — cisco / ios

Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')

A vulnerability in the implementation of the inter-VM channel of Cisco IOS Software for Cisco 809 and 829 Industrial Integrated Services Routers (Industrial ISRs) and Cisco 1000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR1000) could allow an unauthenticated, adjacent attacker to execute arbitrary shell commands on the Virtual Device Server (VDS) of an affected device. The vulnerability is due to insufficient validation of signaling packets that are destined to VDS. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending malicious packets to an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary commands in the context of the Linux shell of VDS with the privileges of the root user. Because the device is designed on a hypervisor architecture, exploitation of a vulnerability that affects the inter-VM channel may lead to a complete system compromise. For more information about this vulnerability, see the Details section of this advisory.

  • Published: Jun 3, 2020
  • Updated: Nov 16, 2025
  • CVE: CVE-2020-3205
  • Severity: High
  • Exploit:

CVSS v3:

  • Severity: High
  • Score: 8.8
  • AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS v2:

  • Severity: High
  • Score: 8.3
  • AV:A/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
Software From Fixed in
cisco / ios 12.2(60)ez16 12.2(60)ez16.x
cisco / ios 15.0(2)sg11a 15.0(2)sg11a.x
cisco / ios 15.2(4)jaz1 15.2(4)jaz1.x
cisco / ios 15.3(3)jaa1 15.3(3)jaa1.x
cisco / ios 15.3(3)jpi 15.3(3)jpi.x
cisco / ios 15.3(3)jpj 15.3(3)jpj.x
cisco / ios 15.4(1)cg 15.4(1)cg.x
cisco / ios 15.4(2)cg 15.4(2)cg.x
cisco / ios 15.4(3)m 15.4(3)m.x
cisco / ios 15.4(3)m1 15.4(3)m1.x
cisco / ios 15.4(3)m2 15.4(3)m2.x
cisco / ios 15.4(3)m3 15.4(3)m3.x
cisco / ios 15.4(3)m4 15.4(3)m4.x
cisco / ios 15.4(3)m5 15.4(3)m5.x
cisco / ios 15.4(3)m6 15.4(3)m6.x
cisco / ios 15.4(3)m6a 15.4(3)m6a.x
cisco / ios 15.4(3)m7 15.4(3)m7.x
cisco / ios 15.4(3)m8 15.4(3)m8.x
cisco / ios 15.4(3)m9 15.4(3)m9.x
cisco / ios 15.4(3)m10 15.4(3)m10.x
cisco / ios 15.5(1)t 15.5(1)t.x
cisco / ios 15.5(1)t2 15.5(1)t2.x
cisco / ios 15.5(1)t3 15.5(1)t3.x
cisco / ios 15.5(1)t4 15.5(1)t4.x
cisco / ios 15.5(2)t 15.5(2)t.x
cisco / ios 15.5(2)t1 15.5(2)t1.x
cisco / ios 15.5(2)t2 15.5(2)t2.x
cisco / ios 15.5(2)t3 15.5(2)t3.x
cisco / ios 15.5(2)t4 15.5(2)t4.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m 15.5(3)m.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m0a 15.5(3)m0a.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m1 15.5(3)m1.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m2 15.5(3)m2.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m2a 15.5(3)m2a.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m3 15.5(3)m3.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m4 15.5(3)m4.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m4a 15.5(3)m4a.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m5 15.5(3)m5.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m6 15.5(3)m6.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m6a 15.5(3)m6a.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m7 15.5(3)m7.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m8 15.5(3)m8.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m9 15.5(3)m9.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m10 15.5(3)m10.x
cisco / ios 15.5(3)m11 15.5(3)m11.x
cisco / ios 15.6(1)t 15.6(1)t.x
cisco / ios 15.6(1)t0a 15.6(1)t0a.x
cisco / ios 15.6(1)t1 15.6(1)t1.x
cisco / ios 15.6(1)t2 15.6(1)t2.x
cisco / ios 15.6(1)t3 15.6(1)t3.x
cisco / ios 15.6(2)t 15.6(2)t.x
cisco / ios 15.6(2)t1 15.6(2)t1.x
cisco / ios 15.6(2)t2 15.6(2)t2.x
cisco / ios 15.6(2)t3 15.6(2)t3.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m 15.6(3)m.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m0a 15.6(3)m0a.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m1 15.6(3)m1.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m1b 15.6(3)m1b.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m2 15.6(3)m2.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m3 15.6(3)m3.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m3a 15.6(3)m3a.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m4 15.6(3)m4.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m5 15.6(3)m5.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m6 15.6(3)m6.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m6a 15.6(3)m6a.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m6b 15.6(3)m6b.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m7 15.6(3)m7.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m8 15.6(3)m8.x
cisco / ios 15.6(3)m9 15.6(3)m9.x
cisco / ios 15.7(3)m 15.7(3)m.x
cisco / ios 15.7(3)m1 15.7(3)m1.x
cisco / ios 15.7(3)m2 15.7(3)m2.x
cisco / ios 15.7(3)m3 15.7(3)m3.x
cisco / ios 15.7(3)m4 15.7(3)m4.x
cisco / ios 15.7(3)m4a 15.7(3)m4a.x
cisco / ios 15.7(3)m4b 15.7(3)m4b.x
cisco / ios 15.7(3)m5 15.7(3)m5.x
cisco / ios 15.7(3)m6 15.7(3)m6.x
cisco / ios 15.7(3)m7 15.7(3)m7.x
cisco / ios 15.8(3)m 15.8(3)m.x
cisco / ios 15.8(3)m0a 15.8(3)m0a.x
cisco / ios 15.8(3)m1 15.8(3)m1.x
cisco / ios 15.8(3)m2 15.8(3)m2.x
cisco / ios 15.8(3)m2a 15.8(3)m2a.x
cisco / ios 15.8(3)m3 15.8(3)m3.x
cisco / ios 15.8(3)m3a 15.8(3)m3a.x
cisco / ios 15.8(3)m3b 15.8(3)m3b.x
cisco / ios 15.8(3)m4 15.8(3)m4.x
cisco / ios 15.8(3)m5 15.8(3)m5.x
cisco / ios 15.9(3)m 15.9(3)m.x
cisco / ios 15.9(3)m0a 15.9(3)m0a.x

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.