Vulnerability · Published Aug 5, 2026 · Assigned by cisco
CVE-2026-20272Cisco IOS XE Software Security Hardening Release
Critical 9.8
In plain English
A critical-severity injection in Cisco IOS XE Software from Cisco. There are no confirmed reports of exploitation so far. The chance it is exploited in the next 30 days is estimated at 0.6% (higher than 48% of all known vulnerabilities).
Official description
As part of Cisco's ongoing commitment to proactive security and product quality, the Cisco IOS XE Software engineering team has conducted a comprehensive internal security review. This review resulted in software hardening releases that address multiple internally discovered vulnerabilities. The vulnerabilities tracked by CVE-2026-20272 are related to issues with improper neutralization of special elements that are grouped under the Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) Pillar CWE-74.
Affected products (as reported)
| Vendor | Product | Versions |
|---|---|---|
| Cisco | Cisco IOS XE Software | 17.2.1a16.12.1y16.12.3s16.7.1b16.6.216.6.516.12.1w16.9.1d |
Weakness: CWE-74 · Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H