A vulnerability in the Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (MIME) scanner of Cisco AsyncOS Software for Cisco Email Security Appliances (ESA) could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to bypass configured user filters on the device. The vulnerability is due to improper error handling of a malformed MIME header in an email attachment. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending an email with a crafted MIME attachment. For example, a successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass configured user filters to drop the email. The malformed MIME headers may not be RFC compliant. However, some mail clients could still allow users to access the attachment, which may not have been properly filtered by the device. Cisco Bug IDs: CSCvf44666.
This vulnerability carries a MEDIUM severity rating with a CVSS v3.1 score of 5.8, indicating it can be exploited remotely over the network with relatively low complexity without requiring user interaction and does not require pre-existing privileges . The vulnerability impacts limited integrity, for affected systems. Impacting 1 product from cisco organizations running these solutions should prioritize assessment and patching.
First disclosed in 2017, this vulnerability was reported during a period defined by widespread IoT adoption challenges, mobile security concerns, and the emergence of advanced persistent threat (APT) techniques. Contemporary mitigation strategies focused on secure development practices and third-party component vetting.
2017-11-30T09:29:01.073
2025-04-20T01:37:25.860
Deferred
CVSSv3.0: 5.8 (MEDIUM)
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:P/A:N
10.0
2.9
SecUtils normalizes and enriches National Vulnerability Database (NVD) records by standardizing vendor and product identifiers, aggregating vulnerability metadata from both NVD and MITRE sources, and providing structured context for security teams. For cisco's affected products, we extract Common Platform Enumeration (CPE) data, Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) classifications, CVSS severity metrics, and reference data to enable rapid vulnerability prioritization and asset correlation. This record contains no exploit code, proof-of-concept instructions, or attack methodologies—only defensive intelligence necessary for patch management, risk assessment, and security operations.