CVE Intelligence
Medium

CVE-2026-20152 — Cisco Secure Web Appliance Authentication Service Traffic Bypass Vulnerability

A vulnerability in the authentication service feature of Cisco AsyncOS Software for Cisco Secure Web Appliance could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to bypass authentication policy requirements. This vulnerability is due to improper validation of user-supplied authentication input in HTTP requests. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending HTTP requests that contain specific authentication requests to an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass policy enforcement on the device. There is no direct impact to the Cisco Secure Web Appliance. However, as a result of exploiting this vulnerability, an attacker could send HTTP requests that should be restricted through the device.

Published Apr 15, 2026 · Updated Oct 13, 2026 · Sources: NIST National Vulnerability Database, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP · 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.

No exploitation signal in the sources consulted so far.
How the score was calculated
  • EPSS 0.3% (30-day exploitation probability)+3
  • Technical severity (medium)+3
  • 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
Not confirmed
Not in CISA KEV — an absence of record, not proof it is unexploited.
EPSS FIRST
0.3%
ahead of 21% of scored CVEs · Oct 14, 2026
Affects
Cisco
Cisco Secure Web Appliance
CVSS base
5.3
Medium · 2 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
None
none · proof-of-concept · active
Automatable
Yes
can an attacker script the kill-chain steps
Technical impact
Partial
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.

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 Secure Web Appliance).
  2. The attack is network-based and needs no privileges: restrict exposure (ACLs, VPN, WAF) until patched.
  3. No fix documented in the sources: reduce exposure and monitor the vendor advisory.
  4. Search available logs for exploit probes, errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

VendorProductVersionsStatusSource
Cisco Cisco Secure Web Appliance version 14.5.0-673version 15.0.0-322version 12.5.6-008version 15.1.0-287version 14.5.2-011version 15.2.0-116version 14.0.5-007version 15.2.0-164
and 51 more version 14.5.1-510version 12.0.2-012version 12.0.2-004version 14.5.1-607version 14.5.3-033version 15.0.1-004version 15.2.1-011version 15.0.0-355version 14.5.0-537version 12.0.1-334version 14.0.1-503version 14.0.1-053version 11.8.0-429version 14.0.1-040version 14.0.1-014version 12.5.1-043version 15.2.2-009version 15.2.3-007version 15.2.4-022version 15.2.5-011version 15.2.5-013version 14.6.0-108version 11.8.4-004version 12.5.3-002version 12.0.3-007version 12.0.3-005version 14.1.0-032version 14.1.0-047version 14.1.0-041version 12.0.4-002version 14.0.2-012version 11.8.0-414version 12.0.1-268version 11.8.1-023version 11.8.3-021version 11.8.3-018version 12.5.1-011version 11.8.0-453version 12.5.2-007version 12.5.2-011version 14.5.0-498version 12.5.4-005version 12.5.4-011version 12.0.5-011version 14.0.3-014version 12.5.5-004version 12.5.5-005version 12.5.5-008version 14.0.4-005version 14.5.1-008version 14.5.1-016
Vulnerable CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

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
None
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

Every base score collected

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

ScoreVersionSeverityExpl.ImpactScored by
5.3 CVSS 3.1 Medium 3.9 1.4 psirt@cisco.com via NIST National Vulnerability Database
5.3 CVSS 3.1 Medium — — cisco via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N (score shown at the top: psirt@cisco.com)

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-305

Other CVEs with this weakness →

EPSS over time FIRST

Oct 13, 2026 → Oct 14, 2026 · 2 reading(s) · max 0.30%

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).
web/proxy/WAF logsnetwork IDS/IPS

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

  • 2026
  • Affected products added · cisco/cisco secure web appliance
    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
  • CVSS changed · 5.3
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Source status changed · → Awaiting Analysis
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Record created in this database
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • CVE published
    Apr 15, 2026 · cisco

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

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

References

1 on the record

Elsewhere on this site

Cisco
every CVE for this vendor
CWE-305
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

  • CVE-2026-20056 Cisco Secure Web Appliance TBD Bypass Vulnerability Feb 4, 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-2026-20152 is "Cisco Secure Web Appliance Authentication Service Traffic Bypass Vulnerability", rated Medium. It affects Cisco Secure Web Appliance (Cisco); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 5.3 describes technical severity. EPSS 0.30% 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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