Evidence used
- No CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.
- EPSS is 0.45% for the current model date.
BlackTreeCVE IntelligenceFull vulnerability report · 2026
CVE-2026-20324High confidence
Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center sftunnel Root Arbitrary Code Exectution Vulnerability
Cisco · Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center (FMC)
Official source article: Cisco CISCO-SA-FMC-SFTUNN-CODEX-C3O4JFT2 ↗. Check the applicable product and release in the original source.
9.9CriticalCVSS 3.1
Within 7 days
Mitigation availableCritical technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.
R
Open reassessment dashboard →Operational reassessment
Published severity in operational context
Published severityCritical→Operational priority:Critical, unchanged from published severity.unchanged
Compensating controls
- Apply the linked authoritative mitigation while planning the permanent fix.
- Restrict the affected network interface to trusted sources where business-safe.
- Monitor vendor guidance and exploitation sources for a material change.
Verification
- Confirm that the asset runs Cisco Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center (FMC) and falls inside the recorded affected range.
- Recheck the vendor advisory before scheduling a change because no verified fixed version is currently retained.
- Validate exposure, authentication requirements and compensating controls in the actual environment.
- Reopen this reassessment when CVSS, KEV, EPSS, exploit evidence or remediation changes.
Critical technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.
Mitigation available01
What, why and how
A vulnerability in the sftunnel inter-device communication protocol of Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center (FMC) Software could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary commands as root. This vulnerability exists because a registered sftunnel peer has incorrect permissions to write an arbitrary file to any location on the device. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by hijacking the sftunnel communication connection or being a valid registered sftunnel peer and sending an sftunnel command to write a malicious file to the disk of an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to write a file to the device that is executed with root privileges. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker must have valid user credentials on the affected device.
What
A vulnerability in the sftunnel inter-device communication protocol of Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center (FMC) Software could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary commands as root. This vulnerability exists because a registered sftunnel peer has incorrect permissions to write an arbitrary file to any location on the device. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by hijacking the sftunnel communication connection or being a valid registered sftunnel peer and sending an sftunnel command to write a malicious file to the disk of an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to write a file to the device that is executed with root privileges. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker must have valid user credentials on the affected device.
Why
The application reaches a protected operation without first confirming that the requester is authorised.
How
An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation with low privileges. If successful, the issue may execute code or commands in the affected security context.
What
A vulnerability in the sftunnel inter-device communication protocol of Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center (FMC) Software could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary commands as root. This vulnerability exists because a registered sftunnel peer has incorrect permissions to write an arbitrary file to any location on the device. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by hijacking the sftunnel communication connection or being a valid registered sftunnel peer and sending an sftunnel command to write a malicious file to the disk of an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to write a file to the device that is executed with root privileges. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker must have valid user credentials on the affected device.
Why
The application reaches a protected operation without first confirming that the requester is authorised.
How
An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation with low privileges. If successful, the issue may execute code or commands in the affected security context.
02
Exploit reality and attack path
CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.
Observed exploitation No confirmed evidence
?
Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.No CISA KEV match was present at the last successful refresh. This means no confirmation from that source, not proof of no exploitation.
Public PoC / exploit material None recorded
?
Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.No exploit-tagged reference or CISA SSVC proof-of-concept state is currently recorded. Research may still exist outside the structured feeds.
- Likely attack path
- a network path → Missing Authorization → execute code or commands in the affected security context
- Attack surface
- Network
- Privileges required
- Low: a basic authenticated account is required
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
- Security boundary
- Changed: exploitation can affect a different security authority
- Weakness
?
CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness. - CWE-862 ↗
CWE-862: Missing Authorization. The product does not perform an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action.
- CVSS vector
?
CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity. CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:HCommon Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.
AVNetworkAttack vector: The vulnerable component can be reached over a network.ACLowAttack complexity: No specialised conditions are required beyond attacker-controlled input.PRLowPrivileges required: The attacker needs basic user-level privileges.UINoneUser interaction: No action by another user is required.SChangedScope: The attack can affect a component governed by a different security authority.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.IHighIntegrity impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.AHighAvailability impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.- Post-exploitation / living off the land
- After compromise, an attacker may use built-in shells, scripting engines, scheduled tasks and native network utilities for discovery, persistence or movement. This is a plausible LoTL path, not evidence that it has occurred for every attack.
03
Patch and workaround
Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.
- Status
?
Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change. - Mitigation available
- Action
- Cisco ISE e ISE-PIC: 3.0 y anteriores: migrar a una versión corregida; 3.1: 3.1 Patch 12; 3.2: 3.2 Patch 11; 3.3: 3.3 Patch 12; 3.4: 3.4 Patch 7; 3.5: 3.5 Patch 4. Cisco Secure Firewall ASA Software: 9.16 y anteriores: 9.16.4.103; 9.18: 9.18.4.94; 9.20: 9.20.4.49; 9.22: 9.22.3.26; 9.23: 9.23.1.47; 9.24: 9.24.1.26. Cisco Secure FTD Software y Secure FMC Software: 7.0 y anteriores: 7.0.10; 7.2: 7.2.12; 7.4: 7.4.8; 7.6: 7.6.6; 7.7: 7.7.13; 10.0: 10.0.2; 10.1: 10.1.0. Cisco Nexus Dashboard: 4.2 y anteriores: migrar a una versión corregida; 4.3: 4.3.1.175. Para BroadWorks CommPilot Application Software y ThousandEyes Virtual Appliance, así como para configuraciones concretas no cubiertas por las versiones anteriores, se recomienda consultar el aviso correspondiente y utilizar la herramienta Cisco Software Checker.
- Workaround
- No verified workaround is recorded. If business-safe, reduce exposure to the affected interface and allow only trusted sources until authoritative guidance is available.
04
Evidence and provenance
Published 16 Sept 2026 · Last source change 18 Sept 2026, 03:55 UTC · CWE-862 · Missing Authorization
CVE recordCVE.org · 5.2
CVSS sourceCNA
EPSS source FIRST · tracked since 2026-09-17
?
The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2026-81103
Product sourceCNA
Remediation sourceCVE/CNA references
CWE sourceCNA
NVD statusNVD awaiting enrichment
Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.
Material change intelligence
View recent updates ↗What changed after publication
- Remediation statusRemediation status changed from Awaiting fix to Mitigation available.INCIBE-CERT ↗
- Before
- Awaiting fix
- After
- Mitigation available
- ENISA EUVD mappingEUVD-2026-81103 was added to the official ENISA EUVD mapping for this CVE.ENISA EUVD ↗
- Before
- not recorded
- After
- {"euvdId":"EUVD-2026-81103"}
- Catalogue recordCVE added to the BlackTree catalogue.CNA ↗
Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report
- CVE
- Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
- CVSS
- Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
- EPSS
- Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
- CWE
- Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
- CNA
- CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
- CISA ADP
- Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
- NVD
- National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
- CERT / CSIRT
- A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
- PoC
- Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
- CSAF
- Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
- LoTL
- Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.