CVE-2025-20177
Cisco IOS XR Boot Signature Verification Bypass
Description
A vulnerability in the boot process of Cisco IOS XR Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to bypass Cisco IOS XR image signature verification and load unverified software on an affected device. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker must have root-system privileges on the affected device. This vulnerability is due to incomplete validation of files in the boot verification process. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by manipulating the system configuration options to bypass some of the integrity checks that are performed during the boot process. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to control the boot configuration, which could enable them to bypass the requirement to run Cisco-signed images or alter the security properties of the running system. Note: Because exploitation of this vulnerability could result in the attacker bypassing Cisco image verification, Cisco has raised the Security Impact Rating (SIR) of this advisory from Medium to High.
INFO
Published Date :
March 12, 2025, 4:15 p.m.
Last Modified :
Aug. 6, 2025, 5:04 p.m.
Remotely Exploit :
No
Source :
[email protected]
Affected Products
The following products are affected by CVE-2025-20177
vulnerability.
Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the
products
that
are
affected, the information is not represented in the table below.
CVSS Scores
| Score | Version | Severity | Vector | Exploitability Score | Impact Score | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | MEDIUM | [email protected] |
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools
Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth
information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to
CVE-2025-20177.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2025-20177 is
associated with the following CWEs:
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification
(CAPEC)
stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and
approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2025-20177
weaknesses.
We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).
Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.
The following list is the news that have been mention
CVE-2025-20177 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2025-20177 vulnerability over time.
Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.
-
Initial Analysis by [email protected]
Aug. 06, 2025
Action Type Old Value New Value Added CPE Configuration AND OR *cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xr:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 24.2 up to (excluding) 24.2.2 *cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xr:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 24.3 up to (excluding) 24.3.2 *cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xr:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (excluding) 7.11.21 *cpe:2.3:o:cisco:ios_xr:24.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:* OR cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-12z20g-sys-a:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-12z20g-sys-d:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-24z8q2c-sys:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-28z4c-sys-a:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-28z4c-sys-d:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-acc-sys:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8101-32fh:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8102-64h:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8201:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8202:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8808:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8812:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8818:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540x-12z16g-sys-a:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540x-12z16g-sys-d:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540x-16z4g8q2c-a:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540x-16z4g8q2c-d:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540x-acc-sys:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8201-32fh:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8608:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8804:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_1010:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_1014:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_57b1-5dse-sys:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_57b1-6d24-sys:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_57c1-48q6-sys:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_57c3-mod-sys:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_57d2-18dd-sys:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-6z14s-sys-d:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-6z18g-sys-a:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-6z18g-sys-d:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-24q2c2dd-sys:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-24q8l2dd-sys:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-fh-agg:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540-fh-csr-sys:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540x-4z14g2q-a:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540x-4z14g2q-d:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540x-6z18g-sys-a:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540x-6z18g-sys-d:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540x-8z16g-sys-a:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540x-8z16g-sys-d:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:ncs_540x-16z8q2c-d:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8011-4g24y4h-i:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8101-32fh-o:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8101-32h-o:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8102-28fh-dpu-o:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8102-64h-o:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8111-32eh-o:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8122-64eh-o:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8122-64ehf-o:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8201-24h8fh:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8202-32fh-m:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8201-32fh-o:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8212-48fh-m:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8404:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8501-sys-mt:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8700:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8711-32fh-m:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:h:cisco:8712-mod-m:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Added Reference Type Cisco Systems, Inc.: https://blog.apnic.net/2024/09/02/crafting-endless-as-paths-in-bgp/ Types: Product Added Reference Type Cisco Systems, Inc.: https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-ios-xr-verii-bypass-HhPwQRvx Types: Vendor Advisory -
New CVE Received by [email protected]
Mar. 12, 2025
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Description A vulnerability in the boot process of Cisco IOS XR Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to bypass Cisco IOS XR image signature verification and load unverified software on an affected device. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker must have root-system privileges on the affected device. This vulnerability is due to incomplete validation of files in the boot verification process. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by manipulating the system configuration options to bypass some of the integrity checks that are performed during the boot process. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to control the boot configuration, which could enable them to bypass the requirement to run Cisco-signed images or alter the security properties of the running system. Note: Because exploitation of this vulnerability could result in the attacker bypassing Cisco image verification, Cisco has raised the Security Impact Rating (SIR) of this advisory from Medium to High. Added CVSS V3.1 AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Added CWE CWE-274 Added Reference https://blog.apnic.net/2024/09/02/crafting-endless-as-paths-in-bgp/ Added Reference https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-ios-xr-verii-bypass-HhPwQRvx