CVE-2026-20182Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Controller Authentication Bypass Vulnerability
Updated under an hour ago ()
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It affects Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Controller and 4 other products. Add what you run to find out whether that includes you.
CISA lists it as known exploited since May 14, 2026; federal agencies had to remediate by May 17, 2026. Treat that date as your deadline.
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May 2026: This security advisory provides the details and fix information for a vulnerability that was discovered and fixed after the was disclosed in February 2026. This new advisory is for a new vulnerability in the control connection handshaking. The section of this advisory includes Show Control Connections guidance to help with system checks. A vulnerability in the peering authentication in Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Controller, formerly SD-WAN vSmart, Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager, formerly SD-WAN vManage, and Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Validator, formerly SD-WAN vBond, could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to bypass authentication and obtain administrative privileges on an affected system. This vulnerability exists because the peering authentication mechanism in an affected system is not working properly. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending crafted requests to the affected system. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to log in to an affected Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Controller as an internal, high-privileged, non-root user account. Using this account, the attacker could access NETCONF, which would then allow the attacker to manipulate network configuration for the SD-WAN fabric.
- CVSS
- 10.0 CRITICAL (v3.1, CNA)CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
- Weakness (CWE)
- CWE-287
- Known exploited
- Added to CISA KEV May 14, 2026; federal remediation due May 17, 2026Please adhere to CISA’s guidelines to assess exposure and mitigate risks associated with Cisco SD-WAN devices as outlined in CISA’s Emergency Directive 26-03 (URL listed below in Notes) and CISA’s Hunt & Hardening Guidance for Cisco SD-WAN Devices (URL listed below in Notes). Adhere to the applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are not available.
- EPSS (exploitation in the next 30 days)
- 91.82% (percentile 100)
- Assigned by
- cisco
- NVD analysis
- Analyzed
- Record last updated
- Jun 16, 2026
- First seen by InfoSec Signals
- Oct 9, 2026
Affected products
Cisco Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Controller cisco:catalyst_sd_wan_controller (from the name) | 20.6.4; 20.9.2; 20.3.6; 20.7.2; 20.7.1; 20.5.1; 20.6.2; 19.3.0; and 121 more ranges | CNA record |
Cisco Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager cisco:catalyst_sd_wan_manager (from the name) | 20.1.12; 19.2.1; 18.4.4; 18.4.5; 20.1.1.1; 20.1.1; 19.2.099; 18.3.6; and 26 more ranges | CNA record |
cisco catalyst_sd-wan_manager cisco:catalyst_sd-wan_manager | before 20.9.9.1; from 20.10 before 20.12.5.4; from 20.12.6 before 20.12.6.2; from 20.13 before 20.15.4.4; from 20.15.5 before 20.15.5.2; from 20.16 before 20.18.2.2; from 26.1 before 26.1.1.1; 20.12.7 | NVD |
cisco sd-wan_vbond_orchestrator cisco:sd-wan_vbond_orchestrator | before 20.9.9.1; from 20.10 before 20.12.5.4; from 20.12.6 before 20.12.6.2; from 20.13 before 20.15.4.4; from 20.15.5 before 20.15.5.2; from 20.16 before 20.18.2.2; from 26.1 before 26.1.1.1; 20.12.7 | NVD |
cisco sd-wan_vsmart_controller cisco:sd-wan_vsmart_controller | before 20.9.9.1; from 20.10 before 20.12.5.4; from 20.12.6 before 20.12.6.2; from 20.13 before 20.15.4.4; from 20.15.5 before 20.15.5.2; from 20.16 before 20.18.2.2; from 26.1 before 26.1.1.1; 20.12.7 | NVD |
References
- https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-sdwan-rpa2-v69WY2SWvendor-advisory
- https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-sdwan-rpa-EHchtZknot-applicable
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2026-20182us-government-resource
The CVE record on cve.org NVD's entry
The CVE record is authoritative. Products marked “from the name” were identified from the CNA's free-text names, not a CPE, and are matched less certainly. This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.