Assessment
Why it matters
CISA lists this vulnerability as known to be exploited; exploitation is confirmed; EPSS is 91.5%; technical severity is CVSS 10.0.
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.
Who should care
- Teams operating Catalyst SD-WAN, Catalyst SD-WAN Manager, Sd-wan Vbond Orchestrator +1 more
- Vulnerability and exposure management teams
- Security operations teams monitoring exploitation activity
Response plan
What I would do
- Confirm whether Catalyst SD-WAN, Catalyst SD-WAN Manager, Sd-wan Vbond Orchestrator +1 more is present in the environment.
- Identify affected versions and establish whether vulnerable services are exposed or reachable.
- Please 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.
- Review relevant security telemetry for evidence of attempted or successful exploitation.
- Document the remediation decision and track it to verified completion.
Vendor remediation
Patch and remediation links
Use the vendor source below to confirm the correct fixed version, package or mitigation for your affected product.
Technical details
- CVSS vector
- CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
- CWE
- CWE-287
- Affected versions
- Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN; Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager (Version: 20.12.7); Cisco Sd-wan Vbond Orchestrator (Version: 20.12.7); Cisco Sd-wan Vsmart Controller (Version: 20.12.7)
- Published
- 14 May 2026
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
Signal timeline
- CVE published
- Added to CISA KEV
- Latest EPSS score: 91.5%
- Signal calculated at 84