Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
-
AccessSend crafted email to gateway
-
DeliveryMalicious SQL parsed by email logic
-
ExploitSQL injection bypasses validation
-
ExecutionEscalate to OS command execution
-
ImpactRun arbitrary commands as root
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A05:2025 - Injection
ASVS 5.0
V1 - Encoding and Sanitization Parameterized queries, prepared statements
MITRE ATT&CK
2 techniques across 2 tactics: Initial Access, Persistence The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. |
| Exploitation Conditions | No special conditions - remote unauthenticated exploitation of Cisco Secure Email Gateway (AsyncOS) simply by sending a crafted email message containing malicious SQL through the affected device, which processes inbound mail by default. The only precondition is that the appliance is in the mail-processing path (its normal deployment role), so essentially any internet-facing or mail-receiving ESA running an affected AsyncOS build is exposed. No authentication, no user interaction, and no non-default feature toggle are required per the CVSS vector and description; the limiting factor is version - only the enumerated AsyncOS builds are affected. |
| Impact | This is a genuine top-priority vulnerability, not an inflated high-CVSS artifact. Multiple independent signals converge: CVSS 9.8 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N, C:H/I:H/A:H) describes remote, unauthenticated, low-complexity exploitation with total impact; CISA KEV lists it as actively exploited in the wild; and public exploit code is reported available. EPSS is 2.16% (81st percentile) - modest in absolute terms but well above baseline, and EPSS lags behind confirmed KEV exploitation, so the KEV listing is the dominant signal here. SSVC returns Automatable:yes and Technical Impact:total, both consistent with wormable-style unauthenticated RCE. One internal conflict: the SSVC 'Exploitation: none' value directly contradicts the CISA KEV 'actively exploited' status in the same intelligence set - the KEV determination should be treated as authoritative, and the SSVC exploitation field appears stale/miscoded. The CVSS vector is fully consistent with the description (crafted email → SQL injection → root command execution), so no vector-vs-description mismatch exists. Bottom line: treat as emergency patch, especially given root-level command execution on a security appliance. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker crafts an email message embedding malicious SQL statements and sends it through an affected Cisco Secure Email Gateway; the insufficient validation in the email-parsing logic executes the SQL, which escalates into arbitrary command execution as root on the underlying OS - no authentication or user interaction required. Public exploit code is reported available, and CISA confirms active exploitation in the wild. Because the appliance sits in the mail path and processes attacker-supplied mail by design, the attack surface is exposed by normal operation. |
Get an e-mail when this CVE is exploited, patched or re-scored. Free account.
Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Sep 16, 2026
Unauthenticated remote command execution with root privileges affects Cisco Secure Email Gateway running affected AsyncOS builds (13.x, 14.x, 15.x and 16.x), where crafted inbound email can inject SQL into the mail-parsing pipeline and ultimately achieve OS-level code execution. Exploitation requires no authentication, no user interaction, and no non-default configuration per the assessed CVSS vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N), so any internet-facing or mail-receiving appliance - the product's normal deployment role - is exposed. This is confirmed actively exploited (CISA KEV) with publicly available exploit code exists, and while EPSS is a moderate 2.16% (81st percentile), the KEV listing and total technical impact per SSVC make this a genuine top-priority issue rather than an inflated high-CVSS artifact.
RemediationAI
Treat this as an emergency patch: apply the fixed AsyncOS builds published in Cisco's advisory at https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-esa-inj-2bLVGmhX (the available input data does not enumerate a specific fixed version number, so the advisory must be consulted rather than relying on an inferred release). Because confirmed active exploitation is recorded in CISA KEV and publicly available exploit code exists, unpatched appliances should be prioritized ahead of normal maintenance, and patched appliances should be verified against the advisory's fixed-build list covering the 13.x, 14.x, 15.x and 16.x trains. Where immediate upgrade is impossible, compensating controls are inherently limited because the vulnerable code path is the inbound mail-processing role itself: place an intermediate SMTP gateway or mail-filtering layer in front of the ESA that can quarantine or reject messages containing SQL-like payloads and anomalous MIME/header structures before they reach AsyncOS, accepting added latency and the need to harden the intermediate relay as the trade-off; restrict management, CLI and API access to trusted administrative networks so an operator cannot chain this with a separate foothold; segment the ESA so that outbound connections from the appliance to internal database or management hosts are denied, which limits post-exploitation reach but does not prevent the initial root execution; and add process-monitoring alerts for unexpected child processes or file writes under the AsyncOS OS layer to catch exploitation attempts, since the SQL injection path is otherwise silent at the SMTP layer.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 1 package in euvd
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
The root cause is CWE-89, improper neutralization of special elements used in an SQL command, occurring inside the email parsing logic of Cisco AsyncOS on Secure Email Gateway. Mail arriving at the appliance is parsed and passed into backend processing that constructs SQL statements without adequate validation; a crafted message containing malicious SQL statements therefore reaches a database layer that runs with root privileges on the underlying operating system, turning a mail-borne SQL injection into full command execution. The CPE cpe:2.3:a:cisco:cisco_secure_email:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* carries a wildcard version, meaning the vulnerability is tracked at the product level rather than pinned to a single release, and EUVD enumerates the specific impacted AsyncOS builds across the 13.0, 13.5, 14.0, 14.2, 14.3, 15.0, 15.5 and 16.0 trains. Because the injection point is the normal inbound mail path, the attack surface is the SMTP listener itself rather than a management interface, which is why the CVSS vector rates confidentiality, integrity and availability all High with no privileges or interaction required.
Know when Cisco Secure Email gets its next vulnerability
- Watch products and get an email when something new is published
- Check this CVE against your own stack and servers
- Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources
No credit card · 7-day full trial
Severity by source
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Unauthenticated remote attacker delivers a crafted email requiring no interaction, and SQL injection yields root command execution, giving full C/I/A - the vendor 9.8 is well-calibrated.
Primary rating from Vendor (cisco).
CVSS VectorVendor: cisco
Lifecycle Timeline
2DescriptionCVE.org
A vulnerability in the email parsing of Cisco AsyncOS Software for Cisco Secure Email Gateway could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary commands with root privileges on the underlying operating system.
This vulnerability is due to insufficient validation in the email parsing logic. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted email message that contains malicious SQL statements through an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary SQL statements, leading to command execution with root privileges on the underlying operating system.
Articles & Coverage 1
Technical POC Analysis
Bug class: SQL injection (CWE-89), per both the CISA KEV entry and NVD.
Full technical POC analysis - root cause, step-by-step exploitation and patch breakdown - is part of the Pro and Business plans.
Executive ViewAI
Cisco Secure Email Gateway appliances running AsyncOS 13.x through 16.x are exposed to unauthenticated remote root compromise through their normal inbound mail handling role. Because the product is typically internet-facing and central to email security, a successful attack can give adversaries full control of the gateway, enabling mail data theft, mail flow manipulation, and downstream lateral movement. This vulnerability is confirmed actively exploited (CISA KEV) and no vendor-released patch identified at time of analysis, making it a top organizational priority.
No vendor-released patch identified at time of analysis; interim mitigations include isolating or segmenting affected Cisco Secure Email Gateway appliances, restricting inbound mail paths and management access, enabling enhanced logging and monitoring/IDS/IPS virtual patching where supported, and following Cisco advisory workarounds; apply vendor patch when released.
Threat Model
4 threats: Elevation of Privilege, Tampering, Information Disclosure and 1 more
5-step attack chain with trust boundaries and controls
Full threat model - attack chain, trust boundaries, controls per stage and evidence - is part of the Pro and Business plans.
Threat Intelligence Overview
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
SQL injection exploits the way applications construct database queries by mixing user input directly into SQL statements.
More in Cisco Secure Email
View allUnauthenticated remote code execution in Cisco Secure Email Gateway allows attackers to write arbitrary files and execut
Improper-neutralization flaws (CWE-707) in Cisco Secure Email Gateway and Cisco Secure Email and Web Manager - disclosed
Path traversal vulnerabilities (CWE-23) in Cisco Secure Email Gateway (ESA) and Cisco Secure Email and Web Manager (SMA)
Unauthenticated remote attackers who can reach a Cisco Secure Email Gateway or Secure Email and Web Manager deployment c
Cisco Secure Email Gateway and Cisco Secure Email and Web Manager ship a hardening release that fixes multiple internall
Plaintext recovery from S/MIME-encrypted email is possible in Cisco Secure Email due to insufficient message integrity v
Plaintext recovery from S/MIME-encrypted email is possible in Cisco Secure Email due to insufficient validation of messa
EUVD-2026-77625
GHSA-jwpf-jww6-h6vr
NVD
CVE.org
CISA KEV
EPSS
Vulnrichment
VulDB
Exploit-DB