# CVE-2022-20695: Cisco Wireless LAN Controller Management Interface Authentication Bypass Vulnerability

> An unauthenticated remote attacker can bypass authentication and gain administrative access to Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers via crafted credentials in non-default configurations.

- **Severity:** Critical 10.0 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/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:** 15 Apr 2022
- **Updated:** 6 Nov 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-2cxv-rmxp-hvp9

## What is CVE-2022-20695?

CVE-2022-20695 is a critical authentication bypass vulnerability in Cisco Wireless LAN Controller (WLC), published on 15 Apr 2022. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

A vulnerability in the authentication functionality of Cisco Wireless LAN Controller (WLC) Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to bypass authentication controls and log in to the device through the management interface This vulnerability is due to the improper implementation of the password validation algorithm. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by logging in to an affected device with crafted credentials. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass authentication and log in to the device as an administrator. The attacker could obtain privileges that are the same level as an administrative user but it depends on the crafted credentials. Note: This vulnerability exists because of a non-default device configuration that must be present for it to be exploitable. For details about the vulnerable configuration, see the Vulnerable Products section of this advisory.

Weakness: CWE-287 (Improper Authentication), CWE-303 (Incorrect Implementation of Authentication Algorithm)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2022-20695?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Cisco Wireless Lan Controller 8.10.151.0, Cisco Wireless Lan Controller 8.10.162.0.

## How do I fix CVE-2022-20695?

No fix has been published for CVE-2022-20695 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2022-20695 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-20695 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2022-20695 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2022-20695 is a critical authentication bypass vulnerability in Cisco Wireless LAN Controller (WLC), published on 15 Apr 2022. 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-2022-20695 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Cisco Wireless LAN Controller (WLC). 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-2022-20695/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-20695/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-20695
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-20695
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2022-20695

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-20695/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.