Cisco IOS XR up to 25.2.1 CLI access control

CVSS Meta Temp Score
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CTI Interest Score
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8.1$5k-$25k0.00

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability was found in Cisco IOS XR. It has been declared as critical. Affected by this vulnerability is an unknown functionality of the component CLI. Executing a manipulation can lead to access control. This vulnerability is tracked as CVE-2026-20046. The attack is restricted to local execution. No exploit exists. It is recommended to upgrade the affected component.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability has been found in Cisco IOS XR and classified as critical. This vulnerability affects some unknown processing of the component CLI. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a access control vulnerability. The CWE definition for the vulnerability is CWE-264. As an impact it is known to affect confidentiality, integrity, and availability. CVE summarizes:

A vulnerability in task group assignment for a specific CLI command in Cisco IOS XR Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to elevate privileges and gain full administrative control of an affected device. This vulnerability is due to incorrect mapping of a command to task groups within the source code. An attacker with a low-privileged account could exploit this vulnerability by using the CLI command to bypass the task group–based checks. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to elevate privileges and perform actions on an affected device without authorization checks.

The advisory is available at sec.cloudapps.cisco.com. This vulnerability was named CVE-2026-20046 since 10/08/2025. The exploitation appears to be easy. Local access is required to approach this attack. The technical details are unknown and an exploit is not available. The structure of the vulnerability defines a possible price range of USD $5k-$25k at the moment (estimation calculated on 03/14/2026). This vulnerability is assigned to T1068 by the MITRE ATT&CK project.

The vulnerability scanner Nessus provides a plugin with the ID 302175 (Cisco IOS XR Software CLI Privilege Escalation (cisco-sa-iosxr-privesc-bF8D5U4W) (CVE-2026-20046)), which helps to determine the existence of the flaw in a target environment.

Upgrading eliminates this vulnerability.

The vulnerability is also documented in the databases at Tenable (302175), EUVD (EUVD-2026-11216) and CERT Bund (WID-SEC-2026-0706). If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.

Affected

  • Cisco IOS XR

Productinfo

Type

Vendor

Name

Version

License

Website

CPE 2.3info

CPE 2.2info

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 8.3
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 8.1

VulDB Base Score: 7.8
VulDB Temp Score: 7.5
VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CNA Base Score: 8.8
CNA Vector (cisco): 🔒

CVSSv2info

AVACAuCIA
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VectorComplexityAuthenticationConfidentialityIntegrityAvailability
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VulDB Base Score: 🔒
VulDB Temp Score: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: Access control
CWE: CWE-264
CAPEC: 🔒
ATT&CK: 🔒

Physical: Partially
Local: Yes
Remote: No

Availability: 🔒
Status: Not defined

EPSS Score: 🔒
EPSS Percentile: 🔒

Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔒

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Nessus ID: 302175
Nessus Name: Cisco IOS XR Software CLI Privilege Escalation (cisco-sa-iosxr-privesc-bF8D5U4W) (CVE-2026-20046)

Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Upgrade
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔒

Timelineinfo

10/08/2025 CVE reserved
03/11/2026 +154 days Advisory disclosed
03/11/2026 +0 days VulDB entry created
03/14/2026 +3 days VulDB entry last update

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: cisco.com

Advisory: cisco-sa-iosxr-privesc-bF8D5U4W
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2026-20046 (🔒)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2026-20046
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-350482
EUVD: 🔒
CERT Bund: WID-SEC-2026-0706 - Cisco IOS XR: Mehrere Schwachstellen

scip Labs: https://www.scip.ch/en/?labs.20150108

Entryinfo

Created: 03/11/2026 18:05
Updated: 03/14/2026 15:55
Changes: 03/11/2026 18:05 (65), 03/11/2026 19:17 (1), 03/12/2026 22:49 (7), 03/14/2026 00:00 (2), 03/14/2026 15:55 (2)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.

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