CVE-2017-12338

A vulnerability in the CLI of Cisco NX-OS System Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to read the contents of arbitrary files. The vulnerability is due to insufficient input validation for a specific CLI command. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by issuing a crafted command on the CLI. An exploit could allow the attacker unauthorized access to read arbitrary files on the underlying local file system. On products that support multiple virtual device contexts (VDCs), this vulnerability could allow an attacker to read files from any VDC. This vulnerability affects the following products running Cisco NX-OS System Software: Multilayer Director Switches, Nexus 2000 Series Fabric Extenders, Nexus 3000 Series Switches, Nexus 5000 Series Switches, Nexus 5500 Platform Switches, Nexus 5600 Platform Switches, Nexus 6000 Series Switches, Nexus 7000 Series Switches, Nexus 7700 Series Switches, Nexus 9000 Series Fabric Switches in Application Centric Infrastructure (ACI) mode, Nexus 9000 Series Switches in standalone NX-OS mode, Nexus 9500 R-Series Line Cards and Fabric Modules, Unified Computing System Manager. Cisco Bug IDs: CSCve51707, CSCve93961, CSCve93964, CSCve93965, CSCve93968, CSCve93974, CSCve93976.

Published: 2017-11-30 Last update: 2026-05-13 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2017-12338 is rated Low Risk (37/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.16%). Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2017-12338

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-01-12 0.08% 0.16% +0.07%
2 2025-03-30 0.16% 0.08% -0.08%
3 2025-03-29 — 0.16% —

Full EPSS history (7 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2017-12338

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
6.0 3.0 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:H)
They need powerful rights—admin, root, or similar—before this pays off.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:C)
Breaking this can reach past the original component and bite other resources—bigger blast radius.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.
 1.5 4.0 [email protected]
2.1 2.0 LOW
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Access vector (AV:L)
Requires local access to the target system.
Access complexity (AC:L)
Exploitation conditions are straightforward and predictable.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P)
Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:N)
No integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:N)
No availability impact.
 3.9 2.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2017-12338

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2017-12338

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
cisco nx-os 8.0\(1\) cpe:2.3:o:cisco:nx-os:8.0\(1\):*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco nx-os 8.1\(0\)bd\(0.20\) cpe:2.3:o:cisco:nx-os:8.1\(0\)bd\(0.20\):*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco nx-os 8.1\(1\) cpe:2.3:o:cisco:nx-os:8.1\(1\):*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco unified_computing_system 7.0\(0\)hsk\(0.357\) cpe:2.3:a:cisco:unified_computing_system:7.0\(0\)hsk\(0.357\):*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco lan_switch_software 12.2\(1.107\) cpe:2.3:o:cisco:lan_switch_software:12.2\(1.107\):*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2017-12338

cvelogic Threat Intelligence