Description
As part of Cisco's ongoing commitment to proactive security and product quality, the Cisco IOS XR Software engineering team has conducted a comprehensive internal security review. This review resulted in a software hardening releases that address multiple internally discovered vulnerabilities.

The vulnerabilities tracked by CVE-2026-20278 are related to improper neutralization issues that are grouped under the Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) CWE-707.
Published: 2026-09-02
Score: 8.8 High
EPSS: < 1% Very Low
KEV: No
Impact: n/a
Action: n/a
AI Analysis

Impact

The advisory identifies multiple internally discovered vulnerabilities in Cisco IOS XR Software that are classified as improper neutralization of input during the generation of web pages, as enumerated by CWE‑707. Because the advisory does not disclose the precise nature of the neutralization failure, the exact impact is not detailed, but improper neutralization generally indicates a risk of data leakage or code execution if input is not properly sanitized.

Affected Systems

All builds of Cisco IOS XR Software released before the September 2026 hardening release are vulnerable. Exact affected version numbers are not listed in the advisory, so any installation of IOS XR prior to the release should be considered impacted.

Risk and Exploitability

The CVSS score of 8.8 classifies the vulnerability as high severity. The EPSS score is not available, making the probability of exploitation uncertain. The advisory does not provide a formal attack vector or exploit details, and the vulnerability is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on September 3, 2026 at 09:43 UTC.

Remediation

No vendor fix or workaround currently provided.

OpenCVE Recommended Actions

  • Apply the Cisco IOS XR software hardening release from September 2026 to address the identified vulnerabilities.
  • If the router’s web interface is exposed to untrusted networks, consider restricting or disabling it until the patch is applied to reduce potential exposure.
  • Check the Cisco support portal for any additional guidance on applying the hardening release and follow standard best‑practice configuration recommendations.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on September 3, 2026 at 09:43 UTC.

Tracking

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Advisories

No advisories yet.

History

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 15:45:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
First Time appeared Cisco
Cisco ios Xr Software
Vendors & Products Cisco
Cisco ios Xr Software

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 05:30:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Metrics ssvc

{'options': {'Automatable': 'no', 'Exploitation': 'none', 'Technical Impact': 'total'}, 'version': '2.0.3'}

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 16:30:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Description As part of Cisco's ongoing commitment to proactive security and product quality, the Cisco IOS XR Software engineering team has conducted a comprehensive internal security review. This review resulted in a software hardening releases that address multiple internally discovered vulnerabilities. The vulnerabilities tracked by CVE-2026-20278 are related to improper neutralization issues that are grouped under the Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) CWE-707.
Title Cisco IOS XR Software Security Hardening Release: September 2026
Weaknesses CWE-707
References
Metrics cvssV3_1

{'score': 8.8, 'vector': 'CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H'}

Subscriptions

Cisco Ios Xr Software
cve-icon MITRE

Status: PUBLISHED

Assigner: cisco

Published:

Updated: 2026-09-03T03:56:26.376Z

Reserved: 2025-10-08T11:59:15.403Z

Link: CVE-2026-20278

cve-icon Vulnrichment

Updated: 2026-09-02T17:56:40.447Z

cve-icon NVD

Status : Awaiting Analysis

Published: 2026-09-02T17:17:33.267

Modified: 2026-09-03T13:04:39.583

Link: CVE-2026-20278

cve-icon Redhat

No data.

cve-icon OpenCVE Enrichment

Updated: 2026-09-03T15:30:05Z

Weaknesses