CVE-2026-20301
HIGH 8.6A vulnerability in the Extensible Messaging Client Protocol (XMCP), also referred to as the External Client protocol, of Cisco IOS Software and Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to cause a denial of service (DoS) condition on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper handling of malformed XMCP packets. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a malformed XMCP packet to an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to cause the affected device to reload unexpectedly, resulting in a DoS condition. The attacker does not need the XMCP client username to exploit this vulnerability.
Severe if exploited (CVSS 8.6), but no known exploitation and low modeled probability. Patch on a normal cadence.
Exploitation likelihood
0.3%chance of exploitation in 30 days · 26th percentile
Impact if exploited
8.6CVSS 3.1 · HIGH
- ConfidentialityNone
- IntegrityNone
- AvailabilityHigh
What an attacker needs
- ✓Access: Reachable over the network — no local access needed
- ✓Privileges: No account or privileges required
- ✓User interaction: No user interaction needed
- ✓Complexity: No special conditions — reliably repeatable
✓ lowers the bar for an attacker · ⚠ raises it
Proof of concept & exploit code
- github-search Search GitHub for public PoC repos
Test against your own equipment
curl -s https://vulnpedia.com/cve/CVE-2026-20301/poc.jsonMachine-readable PoC index for this CVE (for automation).Listed for defensive triage, patch verification, and authorized testing on systems you own. Machine-readable: /cve/CVE-2026-20301/poc.json
Weakness (CWE)
- CWE-606: Unchecked Input for Loop Condition
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H
All CVSS metrics
- HIGH 8.6 v3.1 · CNA Primary
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H - HIGH 8.6 v3.1 · NVD Secondary
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H