IRONSMITHINTEL
CRITICALCVSS9.8
|
Actively Exploited
|CISA KEV|CVE-2024-20439|Auth: none — unauthenticated|Reboot: required|Manual only

Cisco Smart Licensing Utility Static Credential Vulnerability

Cisco Smart Licensing Utility contains a static credential vulnerability that allows an unauthenticated, remote attacker to log in to an affected system and gain administrative credentials.

Published Sep 4, 2024 · Updated May 16, 2026
Why patchRisk explained in plain English
Worst-case scenarioIf unpatched

A remote attacker, without authentication, can achieve full data confidentiality loss, arbitrary modification of data, complete denial of service or system unavailability. Federal agencies are required to remediate by 2025-04-21 under CISA BOD 22-01.

How the attack worksNo clicks needed

This is a Software Vulnerability (CWE-912) (CWE-912) vulnerability in Cisco Smart Licensing Utility. A vulnerability in Cisco Smart Licensing Utility (CSLU) could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to log into an affected system by using a static administrative credential. This vulnerability is due to an undocumented static user credential for an administrative account. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by using the static credentials to login to the affected system. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to login to the affected system with administrative rights over the CSLU application API. Exploitation requires remote network access, low attack complexity, no authentication required, and no user interaction required.

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Phishing link

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Malicious file

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Server compromised

Am I affected?Quick check

Probably yes if any of these apply:

Network Security Team
Firewall Administrators
IT Security
Running smart license utility: 2.0.0 ≤ v < 2.3.0
Real-world incidentsWhat we've seen

CISA added this CVE to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2025-03-31 based on evidence of active exploitation in the wild. Federal agencies required to remediate by 2025-04-21.

How to patch

Manual remediation steps

Apply the Vendor Patch

This vulnerability is in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog — apply the vendor's security update as soon as possible.

CISA required action: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

References

    1
    Vendor advisory: https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-cslu-7gHMzWmw
    1
    NVD entry: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-20439
    1
    CISA KEV: https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2024-20439
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