📄 Description (English)
A vulnerability in the web-based management interface of Cisco IMC could allow an authenticated, remote attacker with read-only privileges to perform command injection attacks on an affected system and execute arbitrary commands as the root user.
This vulnerability is due to improper validation of user-supplied input. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending crafted commands to the web-based management interface of the affected software. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system as the root user.
🤖 AI Executive Summary
CVE-2026-20094 is a critical command injection vulnerability in Cisco IMC web management interface allowing authenticated read-only users to execute arbitrary commands as root. With CVSS 8.8 and no patch currently available, this poses immediate risk to organizations managing Cisco infrastructure. The vulnerability requires authentication but exploits insufficient input validation, making it a high-priority threat for Saudi enterprises relying on Cisco IMC for infrastructure management.
📄 Description (Arabic)
🤖 AI Intelligence Analysis Analyzed: Apr 22, 2026 12:30
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia Impact Assessment
This vulnerability directly impacts Saudi organizations across multiple critical sectors: Banking sector (SAMA-regulated institutions) managing Cisco IMC for data center infrastructure; Government agencies (NCA oversight) using Cisco equipment for secure communications; Energy sector (ARAMCO and utilities) relying on Cisco IMC for SCADA/ICS management; Telecom operators (STC, Mobily, Zain) managing network infrastructure; Healthcare institutions managing patient data systems. The ability to escalate from read-only to root-level command execution creates severe data breach and operational disruption risks, particularly concerning for organizations handling sensitive national infrastructure.
🏢 Affected Saudi Sectors
Banking and Financial Services
Government and Public Administration
Energy and Utilities
Telecommunications
Healthcare
Data Centers and Cloud Infrastructure
Critical Infrastructure
🎯 MITRE ATT&CK Techniques
⚖️ Saudi Risk Score (AI)
8.5
/ 10.0
🔧 Remediation Steps (English)
IMMEDIATE ACTIONS:
1. Inventory all Cisco IMC deployments across your organization and document versions
2. Restrict network access to Cisco IMC web management interfaces using firewall rules - limit to authorized administrative networks only
3. Implement network segmentation to isolate IMC management traffic from general network
4. Review access logs for suspicious activity from read-only accounts
5. Disable web-based management interface if not actively required; use serial console or out-of-band management instead
COMPENSATING CONTROLS (until patch available):
6. Implement Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block command injection patterns (semicolons, pipes, backticks, $() in parameters)
7. Deploy intrusion detection signatures monitoring for suspicious IMC management interface activity
8. Enforce strong authentication with MFA for all IMC access
9. Implement command logging and monitoring for all IMC administrative actions
10. Use VPN/bastion hosts for all IMC management access
DETECTION RULES:
- Monitor for HTTP POST requests to IMC management endpoints containing shell metacharacters
- Alert on any command execution attempts from read-only user accounts
- Track failed authentication attempts followed by successful access
- Monitor for unusual process execution originating from IMC service
PATCHING:
- Monitor Cisco security advisories daily for patch availability
- Prepare change management procedures for immediate deployment once patch released
- Test patches in non-production environment first
🔧 خطوات المعالجة (العربية)
الإجراءات الفورية:
1. قم بحصر جميع نشرات Cisco IMC عبر مؤسستك وتوثيق الإصدارات
2. قيد الوصول إلى واجهات إدارة Cisco IMC على الويب باستخدام قواعد جدار الحماية - حصره على الشبكات الإدارية المصرح بها فقط
3. طبق تقسيم الشبكة لعزل حركة إدارة IMC عن الشبكة العامة
4. راجع سجلات الوصول للنشاط المريب من حسابات القراءة فقط
5. عطل واجهة الإدارة على الويب إذا لم تكن مطلوبة بنشاط؛ استخدم وحدة التحكم التسلسلية أو الإدارة خارج النطاق بدلاً من ذلك
الضوابط التعويضية (حتى توفر التصحيح):
6. طبق قواعد جدار تطبيقات الويب (WAF) للكشف عن أنماط حقن الأوامر وحجبها
7. نشر توقيعات كشف التطفل لمراقبة نشاط واجهة إدارة IMC المريب
8. فرض المصادقة القوية مع MFA لجميع وصول IMC
9. طبق تسجيل الأوامر والمراقبة لجميع إجراءات إدارة IMC
10. استخدم VPN أو أجهزة bastion لجميع وصول إدارة IMC
قواعد الكشف:
- راقب طلبات HTTP POST إلى نقاط نهاية إدارة IMC التي تحتوي على أحرف metacharacters
- تنبيه على أي محاولات تنفيذ أوامر من حسابات المستخدمين بقراءة فقط
- تتبع محاولات المصادقة الفاشلة متبوعة بالوصول الناجح
- راقب تنفيذ العمليات غير المعتادة من خدمة IMC
📋 Regulatory Compliance Mapping
🟢 NCA ECC 2024
ECC 2024 A.5.1.1 - Access Control Policy
ECC 2024 A.5.2.1 - User Registration and De-registration
ECC 2024 A.5.3.1 - Access Rights Review
ECC 2024 A.8.2.1 - Classification of Information
ECC 2024 A.12.4.1 - Event Logging
ECC 2024 A.12.4.3 - Administrator and Operator Logs
🔵 SAMA CSF
SAMA CSF ID.AM-2 - Hardware and Software Inventory
SAMA CSF PR.AC-1 - Access Control Policy
SAMA CSF PR.AC-4 - Access Rights Management
SAMA CSF DE.CM-1 - Network Monitoring
SAMA CSF DE.CM-3 - Activity Monitoring
🟡 ISO 27001:2022
ISO 27001:2022 A.5.3 - Segregation of Duties
ISO 27001:2022 A.8.1 - User Endpoint Devices
ISO 27001:2022 A.8.2 - Privileged Access Rights
ISO 27001:2022 A.8.3 - Information Access Restriction
ISO 27001:2022 A.12.4 - Logging
🟣 PCI DSS v4.0
PCI DSS 2.1 - Default Passwords
PCI DSS 6.2 - Security Patches
PCI DSS 7.1 - Access Control
PCI DSS 10.2 - User Access Logging