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Threats / Cisco / CVE-2017-6744
CVE-2017-6744 · EUVD no mirror located · GCVE no mirror located Verified 2026-06-22

Cisco IOS software vulnerability

Cisco IOS SNMP subsystem contains a buffer overflow vulnerability allowing authenticated remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause system reload via crafted SNMP packets.

Verdict

Today item — known-exploited.

An authenticated remote attacker can exploit a buffer overflow in the SNMP subsystem to achieve remote code execution or denial of service on affected Cisco IOS devices. The vulnerability is actively exploited in the wild.

CISA KEV Yes · 2022-03-033EPSS 0.07158 (verify live)4
01

Is it exploitable?

— the evidence, ranked above the score
Reported exploitation
2 independent public reports of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2022-03-03).
CISA KEV ↗Confirmed
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.07158 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
Affected: Cisco, IOS software. Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.
NVD ↗Reported
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-119 Memory Buffer Bounds Error — weakness family: Memory safety.CWE assignment from the public NVD record; the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
NVD ↗Reported
02

Who’s exploiting it?

— attribution turns risk into urgency
Attribution not established

No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.

03

Why it matters

— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board
1

Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1

Attacker
I gain network access and authenticate to the SNMP service on a target Cisco IOS device.
Business
Attacker establishes a foothold within the network perimeter by targeting management interfaces.
2

Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2

Attacker
I craft a malicious SNMP packet designed to overflow a buffer in the SNMP subsystem processing logic.
Business
The device becomes vulnerable to code injection through memory corruption.
3

Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3

Attacker
I send the crafted packet via IPv4 or IPv6 to trigger the buffer overflow and inject executable code.
Business
Attacker achieves remote code execution with the privileges of the SNMP process.
4

Data at risk — exfiltration narrative 4

Attacker
I execute arbitrary commands or cause the system to reload, disrupting network operations.
Business
Critical infrastructure availability is compromised, causing operational downtime and potential cascading failures.
04

What to do

— defensible action
  • Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05

Coverage & confidence

— what we know, and what we don’t

Established (cited)

  • KEV listing (CISA)
  • EPSS probability (FIRST)
  • 2 reported-exploitation source(s)
  • CWE weakness mapping (NVD)
  • Catalogued by cisco (CNA)
  • Coverage gaps — stated, not hidden

  • No EUVD / GCVE mirror in feed — single-authority dependency for the identifier.
  • EPSS & exposure are time-varying; verify live at the source.
  • Threat-actor attribution not established from feed data — absence of a name is not absence of compromise.
  • No finder/reporter credit recorded in the public CVE entry — the work behind this find is unattributed.
  • Disclosure & credit2
    Catalogued by ciscoCNA
    Credited with finding itNo finder named in the public CVE record — the work behind this find is unattributed.