CVE-2020-3125
CWE-287Published: May 6, 2020· Updated: Jun 17, 2026
Official Description
A vulnerability in the Kerberos authentication feature of Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to impersonate the Kerberos key distribution center (KDC) and bypass authentication on an affected device that is configured to perform Kerberos authentication for VPN or local device access. The vulnerability is due to insufficient identity verification of the KDC when a successful authentication response is received. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by spoofing the KDC server response to the ASA device. This malicious response would not have been authenticated by the KDC. A successful attack could allow an attacker to bypass Kerberos authentication.
Technical Analysis
CVE-2020-3125 can be exploited remotely over the network without requiring physical or adjacent access, significantly expanding the attack surface for threat actors.
The vulnerability requires no privileges and no user interaction, making it a prime target for automated exploitation campaigns and worm-like propagation.
A successful exploit results in complete confidentiality breach (data exposure), full integrity compromise (data manipulation), availability disruption (denial of service), with a CVSS base score of 9.8.
From a weakness classification perspective (CWE-287): Authentication bypass vulnerabilities allow attackers to access protected resources without valid credentials.
CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown
Affected Vendors & Products
Exploit & PoC Resources
Official Patches & Advisories
All References (2)
Quick Facts
Related CVEs (CWE-287)
Recommended Actions
- →Apply vendor patches immediately
- →Monitor CVE-2020-3125 in threat intel feeds
- →Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts