# CVE-2026-20245: Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager Improper Encoding or Escaping of Output

> Authenticated local attackers with netadmin privileges can execute arbitrary commands as root via crafted file uploads in Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN components.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Yes, since 9 Jun 2026 (CISA KEV)
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 4 Jun 2026
- **Updated:** 21 Jul 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-h4c6-cm2m-h5f6

## What is CVE-2026-20245?

CVE-2026-20245 is a high-severity command injection vulnerability in Cisco Catalyst Sd-Wan Manager, published on 4 Jun 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

A vulnerability in the CLI of Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Controller, formerly SD-WAN vSmart, Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager, formerly SD-WAN vManage, and Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Validator, formerly SD-WAN vBond, could allow an authenticated, local attacker to execute arbitrary commands as root by supplying a crafted file to the affected system.

This vulnerability is due to insufficient validation of user-supplied input. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by uploading a crafted file to the affected system. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to perform command injection attacks on an affected system and elevate their privileges as the root user.
To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker must have netadmin privileges on the affected system. This would require valid credentials or exploitation of  or . Cisco is not aware of successful exploitation by other methods. Cisco has observed limited cases where the exploitation of this bug resulted in a configuration change pushed to edge devices.
Cisco recommends that customers upgrade to the fixed software that is documented in the  that was published on May 14, 2026, and verify the configuration of the edge devices.

Weakness: CWE-116 (Improper Encoding or Escaping of Output)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-20245?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Cisco Catalyst Sd-Wan Manager, Cisco Sd-Wan Vsmart Controller.

## How do I fix CVE-2026-20245?

No fix has been published for CVE-2026-20245 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available. US federal agencies must fix it by 23 Jun 2026.

## Is CVE-2026-20245 being exploited?

Yes. Attackers have exploited CVE-2026-20245 in the wild since at least 9 Jun 2026.

Public exploit code:

- CVE-2026-20245 (github_poc): https://github.com/0xredash/CVE-2026-20245
- CVE-2026-20245 - Cisco SD-WAN - Draft (github_poc): https://github.com/HORKimhab/CVE-2026-20245
- PoC de CVE-2026-20245: escalada de privilegios en Cisco SD-WAN. Solo fines educativos y pruebas autorizadas. (github_poc): https://github.com/fevar54/CVE-2026-20245---Cisco-SD-WAN-Privilege-Escalation-Exploit

## Other vulnerabilities in Cisco Catalyst Sd-Wan Manager

- [CVE-2026-20182](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-20182/): Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Controller Authentication Bypass (critical 10.0, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-20127](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-20127/): Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Controller and Manager Authentication Bypass (critical 10.0, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-76504](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-76504/): Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager Hex Encoding (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-20775](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-20775/): Cisco SD-WAN Path Traversal (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-20128](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-20128/): Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager Storing Passwords in a Recoverable Format (high 7.5, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-20245 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-20245 is a high-severity command injection vulnerability in Cisco Catalyst Sd-Wan Manager, published on 4 Jun 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: Yes. Attackers have exploited CVE-2026-20245 in the wild since at least 9 Jun 2026.

Affected product: Cisco Catalyst Sd-Wan Manager. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-20245/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-20245/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-20245
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-20245
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-20245

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-20245/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.