CVE-2023-20016 | Cisco FXOS Software and UCS Manager Software Configuration Backup Static Key Vulnerability

A vulnerability in the backup configuration feature of Cisco UCS Manager Software and in the configuration export feature of Cisco FXOS Software could allow an unauthenticated attacker with access to a backup file to decrypt sensitive information stored in the full state and configuration backup files. This vulnerability is due to a weakness in the encryption method used for the backup function. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by leveraging a static key used for the backup configuration feature. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to decrypt sensitive information that is stored in full state and configuration backup files, such as local user credentials, authentication server passwords, Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) community names, and other credentials.

Published: 2023-02-23 Last update: 2024-11-21 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2023-20016 is rated Low Risk (32.5/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.07%). 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-2023-20016

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 2026-04-23 0.21% 0.07% -0.14%
2 2026-03-28 0.25% 0.21% -0.04%
3 2026-03-15 — 0.25% —

Full EPSS history (6 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2023-20016

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
6.3 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:R)
A real person has to do something—click, install, enable—otherwise it doesn’t land.
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.
 1.8 4.0 [email protected]
6.5 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
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.
 2.0 4.0 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2023-20016

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2023-20016

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
cisco ucs_central_software < 4.2\(3c\) cpe:2.3:a:cisco:ucs_central_software:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco ucs_6536_firmware — cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ucs_6536_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco ucs_64108_firmware — cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ucs_64108_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco ucs_6454_firmware — cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ucs_6454_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco ucs_6200_firmware — cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ucs_6200_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco ucs_6248up_firmware — cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ucs_6248up_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco ucs_6296up_firmware — cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ucs_6296up_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco ucs_6300_firmware — cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ucs_6300_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco ucs_6324_firmware — cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ucs_6324_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco ucs_6332_firmware — cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ucs_6332_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco ucs_6332-16up_firmware — cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ucs_6332-16up_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cisco fxos < 2.6.1 cpe:2.3:o:cisco:fxos:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2023-20016

cvelogic Threat Intelligence