CVE Intelligence
CISA KEV Critical Injection

CVE-2026-20045 — Cisco Unified Communications Products Code Injection Vulnerability

A vulnerability in Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Unified CM), Cisco Unified Communications Manager Session Management Edition (Unified CM SME), Cisco Unified Communications Manager IM & Presence Service (Unified CM IM&P), Cisco Unity Connection, and Cisco Webex Calling Dedicated Instance could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system of an affected device.  This vulnerability is due to improper validation of user-supplied input in HTTP requests. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a sequence of crafted HTTP requests to the web-based management interface of an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to obtain user-level access to the underlying operating system and then elevate privileges to root.  Note: Cisco has assigned this security advisory a Security Impact Rating (SIR) of Critical rather than High as the score indicates. The reason is that exploitation of this vulnerability could result in an attacker elevating privileges to root.

Published Jan 21, 2026 · Updated Oct 13, 2026 · Sources: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities, NIST National Vulnerability Database, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP, 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 · Jan 21, 2026 Proofs of concept on GitHub · 1
How the score was calculated
  • Confirmed exploitation (CISA KEV)+35
  • Public exploit/PoC (github)+6
  • EPSS 4.5% (30-day exploitation probability)+14
  • Technical severity (critical)+10
  • Automatable exploitation (SSVC)+3

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 Jan 21, 2026
EPSS FIRST
4.54%
ahead of 91% of scored CVEs · Oct 14, 2026
Affects
Cisco
Unified Communications Manager and 2 more
CVSS base
9.8
Critical · 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
Yes
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 mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

US federal deadline: Feb 11, 2026 — passed 246 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 Unified Communications Manager, Cisco Unified Communications Manager Im And Presence Service, Cisco Unity Connection).
  2. Treat as emergency remediation: the CVE is in CISA KEV (confirmed exploitation).
  3. The attack is network-based and needs no privileges: restrict exposure (ACLs, VPN, WAF) until patched.
  4. No fix documented in the sources: reduce exposure and monitor the vendor advisory.
  5. EPSS ahead of 91% of scored CVEs: prioritize it in the patch queue.
  6. Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (injection), errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

VendorProductVersionsStatusSource
Cisco Unified Communications Manager version 15.0.1.13011-1version 15version 15SU1version 14SU4version 14SU4aversion 15SU1aversion 12.5(1)SU9version 15SU2
and 23 more version 15.0.1.13010-1version 15.0.1.13012-1version 15.0.1.13013-1version 15.0.1.13014-1version 15.0.1.13015-1version 15.0.1.13016-1version 15.0.1.13017-1version 15SU3aversion 12.5(1)SU8version 12.5(1)SU2version 12.5(1)SU1version 12.5(1)version 12.5(1)SU3version 12.5(1)SU4version 14version 14SU1version 12.5(1)SU6version 14SU2version 12.5(1)SU7version 12.5(1)SU7aversion 14SU3version 12.5(1)SU8aversion 12.5(1)SU5
Vulnerable CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Cisco Unified Communications Manager ≥ 12.5 and < 14su5≥ 15.0 and ≤ 15su3a Vulnerable NIST National Vulnerability Database
Cisco Unified Communications Manager Im And Presence Service version 14SU2aversion 12.5(1)SU7version 14SU3version 12.5(1)SU8version 15version 12.5(1)SU3version 15SU1version 14SU4
and 12 more version 12.5(1)SU9version 15SU2version 15SU3version 12.5(1)SU6version 14SU2version 12.5(1)version 12.5(1)SU1version 12.5(1)SU2version 12.5(1)SU4version 14version 12.5(1)SU5version 14SU1
Vulnerable CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Cisco Unified Communications Manager Im And Presence Service ≥ 12.5 and < 14su5≥ 15.0 and ≤ 15su3a Vulnerable NIST National Vulnerability Database
Cisco Unity Connection version 15SU3version 15SU2version 12.5(1)SU9version 14SU4version 15SU1version 15version 12.5(1)SU8aversion 14SU3a
and 13 more version 12.5(1)SU8version 14SU3version 12.5(1)SU7version 14SU2version 12.5(1)SU6version 14SU1version 12.5(1)SU5version 14version 12.5(1)SU4version 12.5(1)SU3version 12.5(1)SU2version 12.5(1)SU1version 12.5(1)
Vulnerable CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Cisco Unity Connection ≥ 15.0 and ≤ 15su3≥ 12.5 and < 14su5 Vulnerable NIST National Vulnerability Database

Attack characteristics

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

Attack vector
Network
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
9.8 CVSS 3.1 Critical 3.9 5.9 nvd@nist.gov via NIST National Vulnerability Database
8.2 CVSS 3.1 High 3.9 4.2 psirt@cisco.com via NIST National Vulnerability Database
8.2 CVSS 3.1 High — — GitHub, Inc. via GitHub Security Advisories
8.2 CVSS 3.1 High — — cisco via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H (score shown at the top: nvd@nist.gov)
Scoring entities (NIST, CNA, ADP) score independently; each score is shown with its origin. For prioritization we use 9.8 (NVD (NIST)) as a conservative provisional reference — not a definitive official score.

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-94 · Code Injection

Other CVEs with this weakness →

CISA KEV details CISA

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

Listed
Jan 21, 2026
Federal deadline
Feb 11, 2026
passed 246 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.

Public exploits, PoCs and detection templates

Public code that demonstrates or tests the flaw raises the odds of mass exploitation — and Nuclei templates help find vulnerable assets in your environment.

Proofs of concept on GitHub

Warning: public PoCs are sometimes disguised malware. Use them only for authorized testing in an isolated environment. This portal does not host exploit code — it only points to the sources.

EPSS over time FIRST

Oct 12, 2026 → Oct 14, 2026 · 3 reading(s) · max 4.54%

Detection

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

  • Prioritize edge telemetry for the network-reachable component (proxy, WAF, IDS/IPS).
  • Look for parameters with command/query metacharacters and unexpected child processes of the service.
  • Hunt retroactively in logs from before Jan 21, 2026 (KEV listing): exploitation may have started earlier.
web/proxy/WAF logsnetwork IDS/IPSapplication logsendpoint telemetry (EDR)

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

  • 2026
  • Affected products added · cisco/cisco unified communications manager, cisco/cisco unified communications manager im and presence service, cisco/ci
    Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • SSVC assessment updated
    Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • Record published
    Oct 13, 2026
  • Affected products added · cisco/unified communications manager, cisco/unified communications manager im and presence service, cisco/unity connecti
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • CVSS changed · 9.8
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Source status changed · → Analyzed
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Added to CISA KEV (detected)
    Oct 13, 2026 · CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities
  • Record created in this database
    Oct 13, 2026 · CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities
  • CVE published
    Jan 21, 2026 · cisco
  • Added to CISA KEV catalog
    Jan 20, 2026 · CISA

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

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

References

4 on the record

Elsewhere on this site

Cisco
every CVE for this vendor
2026-01
what else CISA listed that month
Injection
same class
CWE-94
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

  • CVE-2026-20230 Cisco Unified Communications Manager Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF) Vulnerability KEV Jun 3, 2026
  • CVE-2026-20034 Cisco Unity Connection Remote Code Execution Vulnerability May 6, 2026
  • CVE-2026-20035 Cisco Unity Connection Server-Side Request Forgery Vulnerability May 6, 2026
  • CVE-2026-20059 Cisco Unity Connection Reflected Cross-Site Scripting Vulnerability Apr 15, 2026
  • CVE-2026-20060 Cisco Unity Connection Open Redirect Vulnerability Apr 15, 2026
  • CVE-2026-20061 Cisco Unity Connection SQL Injection Vulnerability Apr 15, 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-2026-20045 is "Cisco Unified Communications Products Code Injection Vulnerability", rated Critical. It affects Unified Communications Manager (Cisco); versions are in the scope table. It is in CISA KEV: there is evidence of real-world exploitation. CVSS 9.8 describes technical severity. EPSS 4.54% 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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