CVE Intelligence
CISA KEV High Memory corruption

CVE-2020-3118 — Cisco IOS XR Software Discovery Protocol Format String Vulnerability

A vulnerability in the Cisco Discovery Protocol implementation for Cisco IOS XR Software could allow an unauthenticated, adjacent attacker to execute arbitrary code or cause a reload on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to improper validation of string input from certain fields in Cisco Discovery Protocol messages. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a malicious Cisco Discovery Protocol packet to an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to cause a stack overflow, which could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary code with administrative privileges on an affected device. Cisco Discovery Protocol is a Layer 2 protocol. To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker must be in the same broadcast domain as the affected device (Layer 2 adjacent).

Published Feb 5, 2020 · Updated Oct 13, 2026 · Sources: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP, NIST National Vulnerability Database, GitHub Security Advisories · CNA: cisco

Who exploits it and how urgent it is

A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.

CISA KEV · Nov 3, 2021
How the score was calculated
  • Confirmed exploitation (CISA KEV)+35
  • EPSS 11.7% (30-day exploitation probability)+14
  • Technical severity (high)+6

The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).

Triage

Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.

Exploitation
Confirmed
CISA KEV, listed Nov 3, 2021
EPSS FIRST
11.69%
ahead of 96% of scored CVEs · Oct 14, 2026
Affects
Cisco
Cisco IOS XR Software and 1 more
CVSS base
8.8
High · 4 source(s)

CISA SSVC assessment CISA

Three decision points CISA publishes for the CVEs it assesses (SSVC 2.0.3). A stakeholder decision, not a severity score.

Exploitation
Active
none · proof-of-concept · active
Automatable
No
can an attacker script the kill-chain steps
Technical impact
Total
partial · total control of the vulnerable component

Remediation

Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.

No fix documented by the sources we poll. That does not mean none exists: check the vendor advisory.

CISA required action CISA

Apply updates per vendor instructions.

US federal deadline: May 3, 2022 — passed 1626 day(s) ago

First 24 hours

Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.

  1. Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Cisco Cisco IOS XR Software, Cisco Ios Xr).
  2. Treat as emergency remediation: the CVE is in CISA KEV (confirmed exploitation).
  3. No fix documented in the sources: reduce exposure and monitor the vendor advisory.
  4. EPSS ahead of 96% of scored CVEs: prioritize it in the patch queue.
  5. Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (memory corruption), errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

VendorProductVersionsStatusSource
Cisco Cisco IOS XR Software < 6.6.3 Vulnerable CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Cisco Ios Xr ≥ 6.6.0 and < 6.6.12≥ 7.0.0 and < 7.0.2version 6.5.3version 5.2.5version 6.4.2version 6.6.25version 7.0.1 Vulnerable NIST National Vulnerability Database

Attack characteristics

The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.

Attack vector
Adjacent
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

Every base score collected

Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.

ScoreVersionSeverityExpl.ImpactScored by
8.8 CVSS 3.1 High 2.8 5.9 nvd@nist.gov via NIST National Vulnerability Database
8.8 CVSS 3.1 High — — GitHub, Inc. via GitHub Security Advisories
8.8 CVSS 3.0 High 2.8 5.9 psirt@cisco.com via NIST National Vulnerability Database
8.8 CVSS 3.0 High — — cisco via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
8.3 CVSS 2.0 High 6.5 10.0 nvd@nist.gov via NIST National Vulnerability Database
CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H (score shown at the top: nvd@nist.gov)

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-787 · Out-of-bounds Write

Other CVEs with this weakness →

CISA KEV details CISA

CISA lists a CVE once it has evidence of exploitation against real targets.

Listed
Nov 3, 2021
Federal deadline
May 3, 2022
passed 1626 day(s) ago
Ransomware use
Unknown

CISA records ransomware use only for campaigns it has confirmed, so “Unknown” means unrecorded, not ruled out. The deadline binds US federal agencies; for everyone else it is a reference date.

EPSS over time FIRST

Oct 13, 2026 → Oct 14, 2026 · 2 reading(s) · max 11.69%

Detection

Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.

  • Correlate service crashes/restarts with inbound traffic; repeated crashes may indicate attempts.
  • Hunt retroactively in logs from before Nov 3, 2021 (KEV listing): exploitation may have started earlier.
endpoint telemetry (EDR)crash dumps

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

  • 2026
  • Affected products added · cisco/ios xr
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Source status changed · Published → Analyzed
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Record published
    Oct 13, 2026
  • Affected products added · cisco/cisco ios xr software
    Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • CVSS changed · 8.8
    Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • Source status changed · → Published
    Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • SSVC assessment updated
    Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • Added to CISA KEV (detected)
    Oct 13, 2026 · CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities
  • Record created in this database
    Oct 13, 2026 · CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities
  • 2021
  • Added to CISA KEV catalog
    Nov 2, 2021 · CISA
  • 2020
  • CVE published
    Feb 5, 2020 · cisco

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

  • 3× References added · Oct 13, 2026 – Oct 13, 2026
  • 1× Official description updated · Oct 13, 2026 – Oct 13, 2026

References

5 on the record

Elsewhere on this site

Cisco
every CVE for this vendor
2021-11
what else CISA listed that month
Memory corruption
same class
CWE-787
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

  • CVE-2026-20280 Improper Check or Handling of Exceptional Conditions in Cisco Ios Xr Sep 2, 2026
  • CVE-2026-20274 As part of Cisco's ongoing commitment to proactive security and product quality, the… Sep 2, 2026
  • CVE-2026-20276 As part of Cisco's ongoing commitment to proactive security and product quality, the… Sep 2, 2026
  • CVE-2026-20118 Cisco IOS-XR NCS 5500 and NCS 5700 Egress Packet Network Interfaces Aligner Interrupt Denial of Service Vulnerability Mar 11, 2026
  • CVE-2026-20074 Cisco IOS XR Software Multi-Instance Intermediate System-to-Intermediate System Denial of Service Vulnerability Mar 11, 2026
  • CVE-2026-20046 Cisco IOS XR Software CLI Privilege Escalation Vulnerability Mar 11, 2026

Not in any source we poll

Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.

  • No fixed version, patch or mitigation documented.
  • No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
  • No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
  • No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.

Answered from this record

Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.

What should defenders know first?

CVE-2020-3118 is "Cisco IOS XR Software Discovery Protocol Format String Vulnerability", rated High. It affects Cisco IOS XR Software (Cisco); versions are in the scope table. It is in CISA KEV: there is evidence of real-world exploitation. CVSS 8.8 describes technical severity. EPSS 11.69% estimates the probability of exploitation in 30 days; neither replaces your asset context. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.

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