Exploited vulnerabilities / CVE-2026-20045
Confirmed exploited · privilege escalation · Cisco Unified Communications ManagerCVE-2026-20045
Cisco Unified Communications Manager privilege escalation, confirmed exploited in the wild.
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 contain a code injection vulnerability that could allow the attacker to obtain user-level access to the underlying operating system and then elevate privileges to root.
| CISA's name for it | Cisco Unified Communications Products Code Injection Vulnerability |
|---|---|
| Vendor and product | Cisco · Unified Communications Manager |
| Type | privilege escalation · CWE-94 |
| Exploited | Confirmed by CISA listed 21 January 2026 |
| Likelihood | more likely to be exploited than most |
| Deadline | 11 February 2026 · already passed |
| Used in ransomware | Not reported |
| Advisories | sec.cloudapps.cisco.com ↗ · nvd.nist.gov ↗ |
Three steps, in this order
Install the update on every affected system, servers and workstations alike.
Escalation bugs are chained after a first foothold: check for other exposures an attacker could start from.
Review who holds administrative rights, and alert on new ones.
| CISA's required action | Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable. |
|---|
Know before someone else finds it
Threat Landscape Monitoring fingerprints the software your internet-facing hosts disclose and matches it, every day, against this list and the exploitation scores. When a new entry touches something you run, you are told once, with the host and the fix. The free plan covers one domain.
CVE-2026-20045 in short
Is CVE-2026-20045 being exploited?
Yes. CISA added CVE-2026-20045 to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue on 21 January 2026, which it does only on evidence of exploitation in the wild.
What is the CISA deadline for CVE-2026-20045?
US federal agencies must remediate it by 11 February 2026. Everyone else should treat that date as the latest safe point to patch an internet-facing system.
How likely is CVE-2026-20045 to be exploited in the next 30 days?
FIRST's Exploit Prediction Scoring System gives it 4.5%, the 91st percentile of every CVE it scores.
How do I fix CVE-2026-20045?
Install the update on every affected system, servers and workstations alike. Escalation bugs are chained after a first foothold: check for other exposures an attacker could start from. Review who holds administrative rights, and alert on new ones.
Other Cisco vulnerabilities being exploited
| CVE | Product | Type | Listed |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2026-20320 | BroadWorks | exploited vulnerability | 10 November 2026 |
| CVE-2026-76418 | Secure Firewall ASA Software and Cisco Secure FTD Software | denial of service | 29 October 2026 |
| CVE-2026-76519 | Secure Email Gateway | path traversal | 14 October 2026 |
| CVE-2026-76504 | Catalyst SD-WAN Manager | privilege escalation | 30 September 2026 |
| CVE-2026-76460 | Identity Services Engine | privilege escalation | 16 September 2026 |
| CVE-2026-76461 | Secure Email Gateway | SQL injection | 14 September 2026 |
Sources: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue (released 10 November 2026) and FIRST EPSS. Page compiled automatically by SAK T.L.M, the threat-intelligence tool of SAK T.E.C, on 13 November 2026.