# CVE-2021-40119: Cisco Policy Suite Static SSH Keys Vulnerability

> Unauthenticated remote attackers can log in as root using static SSH keys reused across installations, leading to full system compromise.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 4 Nov 2021
- **Updated:** 7 Nov 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-wjwm-57j9-gm6h

## What is CVE-2021-40119?

CVE-2021-40119 is a critical vulnerability in Cisco Policy Suite (CPS) Software, published on 4 Nov 2021. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

A vulnerability in the key-based SSH authentication mechanism of Cisco Policy Suite could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to log in to an affected system as the root user. This vulnerability is due to the re-use of static SSH keys across installations. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by extracting a key from a system under their control. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to log in to an affected system as the root user.

Weakness: CWE-798 (Use of Hard-coded Credentials), CWE-321 (Use of Hard-coded Cryptographic Key)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-40119?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Cisco Policy Suite.

## How do I fix CVE-2021-40119?

No fix has been published for CVE-2021-40119 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2021-40119 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-40119 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Cisco Policy Suite (CPS) Software

- [CVE-2017-6623](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-6623/): Privilege escalation in Cisco Policy Suite (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2018-0089](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-0089/): Information disclosure in Cisco Policy Suite (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2017-6781](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-6781/): Privilege escalation in Policy Suite (medium 5.3)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2021-40119 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2021-40119 is a critical vulnerability in Cisco Policy Suite (CPS) Software, published on 4 Nov 2021. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-40119 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Cisco Policy Suite (CPS) Software. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-40119/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-40119/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-40119
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-40119
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-40119

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-40119/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.