CVE-2026-20004

HIGH

Cisco IOS XE Software 16.9.1-16.9.7 - Unauthenticated Denial of Service via TLS Connection Memory Exhaustion

Title source: llm
STIX 2.1

Description

A vulnerability in the TLS library of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, adjacent attacker to exhaust the available memory of an affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper management of memory resources during TLS connection setup. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by repeatedly triggering the conditions that cause the memory increase. This could be done in a variety of ways, such as by repeatedly attempting Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP) authentication when local EAP is enabled on an affected device or by using a machine-in-the-middle attack and resetting TLS connections between the affected device and other devices. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to exhaust the available memory on an affected device, resulting in an unexpected reload and a denial of service (DoS) condition.

Scores

CVSS v3 7.4
EPSS 0.0006
EPSS Percentile 17.7%
Attack Vector ADJACENT_NETWORK
CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H

CISA SSVC

Vulnrichment
Exploitation none
Automatable no
Technical Impact partial

Details

CWE
CWE-771
Status published
Products (50)
Cisco/Cisco IOS XE Software 16.10.1
Cisco/Cisco IOS XE Software 16.10.1a
Cisco/Cisco IOS XE Software 16.10.1b
Cisco/Cisco IOS XE Software 16.10.1c
Cisco/Cisco IOS XE Software 16.10.1d
Cisco/Cisco IOS XE Software 16.10.1e
Cisco/Cisco IOS XE Software 16.10.1f
Cisco/Cisco IOS XE Software 16.10.1g
Cisco/Cisco IOS XE Software 16.10.1s
Cisco/Cisco IOS XE Software 16.10.2
... and 40 more
Published Mar 25, 2026
Tracked Since Mar 25, 2026